r 


FAMILIAR 
TREES 


E  S.MATHEWS 


I         ' 


J 


mp  1.  M.  Bill  ffitbrarg 


Narttj  (Eamlttta  £>tate  Umueratty 


2.  SMITH   REYNOLDS 
FOUNDATION 


COLLECTION   IN 
SCIENCE  AND  TECHNOLOGY 


QK482 

mi 


N.C.  STATE  UNIVERSITY     D.H.  HILL  LIBRARY 


S001 92277  S 


AU 


-€-^-- 


THIS  BOOK  IS  DUE  ON  THE  DATE 
INDICATED  BELOW  AND  IS  SUB- 
JECT TO  AN  OVERDUE  FINE  AS 
POSTED  AT  THE  CIRCULATION 
DESK. 


'f 


MAY  l  5  J992 


y. 


OCT  t  9  1894 


DEC  2  0  1994 


MAY  1  7  2000 


\  m 


*n 


LIQUIDAMBAR. 

Leiperville,  Delaware  Co.,  Penn. 


-—  - ■..^--^--  — 


EDITION  IN  COLORS 


Familiar  Trees 
and  their  Leaves 

Described  and  Illustrated  by 

F.   Schuyler   Mathews 

Author  of  Familiar  Flowers,  Familiar  Life  in  Field 
and  Forest,  and  Familiar  Features  of  the   Roadside 


With  Illustrations  in  Colors  and  over  Two  Hundred 

Drawings  by   the  Author,  and   an   Introduction  by 

Prof.  L.  H.  Bailey,  of  Cornell  University 


New  York 

D.  Appleton  and   Company 

1908 


Copyright.  1396,  1901, 
By   D.   APPLETON   AND   COMPANY. 


PEEFACE   TO   THE   EDITION   IN   COLOES. 


One  of  the  most  interesting  things  in  connection 
with  the  study  of  nature  and  the  pursuit  of  art  is 
the  study  of  color.  It  would  take  a  massive  volume 
profuse  with  illustrations  to  adequately  describe  and 
portray  those  phases  of  color  which  are  common  at 
any  hour  of  the  day  in  the  field  and  woodland. 

Trees  have  their  moods  as  well  as  men,  and  these 
are  expressed  in  color  which  is  influenced  by,  and 
largely  dependent  upon,  sunlight  and  atmospheric 
conditions.  To  be  sure,  it  is  not  quite  possible  to 
perfectly  represent  these  moods  in  a  process  repro- 
duction of  a  water  -  color  study  ;  but  a  suggestion 
of  such  character  is  far  better  than  the  complete 
absence  of  it,  and,  it  must  be  acknowledged,  mod- 
ern processes  are  wonderfully  faithful  to  form  and 
the  touch  of  the  artist's  brush. 

With  the  hope  of  more  clearly  expressing  by 
illustration  the  life  and  moods  of  some  of  our  com- 
mon trees,  the  publishers  have  added  to  this  new 
edition  the  likenesses,  in  color,  of  the  birch,  maple, 

red  spruce,  liquidambar,  and  other  familiar  charac- 

iii 


iv         FAMILIAR  TREES  AXD   THEIR  LEAVES. 

ters  of  tlie  field  and  forest.  My  sketches  in  water- 
color  were  therefore  intentionally  impressionistic. 
I  avoided  all  those  petty  details  which  the  camera 
could  have  given  with  minute  fidelity,  and  aimed 
for  color  and  effect,  for  mass  and  character. 

Whether  the  effort  was  successful  or  not  remains 
for  the  reader  to  judge.  At  all  events  the  repro- 
ductions deserve  to  be  kindly  received,  because 
color  invariably  involves  such  a  stupendous  amount 
of  labor  in  the  process  of  duplication  (a  fact  which 
few  appreciate  or  understand),  and  mechanical  results 
are  so  extremely  uncertain  even  in  the  hands  of  a 
skilled  wrorkman.  But  there  is  one  good  point  about 
process  :  it  does  not  superimpose  another  man's  hand 
between  the  artist  and  his  reproduced  picture.  It 
does  not  distort  his  drawing,  nor  does  it  ignore  his 
technique ;  in  fact,  it  has  now  proved  itself  a  fair 
means  of  attaining  both  color  and  form  with  some 
degree  of  fidelity.  A  mere  black-and-white  photo- 
graph fails  to  tell  half  the  truth  of  nature.  In  June, 
when  the  maple  and  the  liquidambar  are  verdant 
green,  the  lifeless  photograph  takes  no  account  of 
the  fact.  Nothing  short  of  palette  and  brush  in  the 
hands  of  an  artist  can  tell  the  truth  about  the  field 
and  forest  on  a  rare  day  of  June.  The  lilac  shad- 
ows, the  purple  tree  trunk,  the  emerald  foliage,  the 
cobalt  sky,  the  warm  pink  tone  of  the  atmosphere 
on  what  is  commonly  called  "  an  artist's  day  " — these 
are  not  to  be   photographed.      The  colored  fire   of 


PREFACE   TO   THE  EDITION   IN   COLORS.  v 

cloud  and  sky,  the  soft  emerald  of  the  meadow 
broken  by  the  lilac-blue  shadow  of  the  stately  elm 
— what  can  the  camera  tell  of  these  ? 

We  have  some  little  record  of  these  colors  in  the 
tree  pictures ;  they  tell  how  the  oak  differs  from  the 
maple,  and  the  tupelo  from  either.  We  must  not 
expect  more  ;  it  is  a  simple  chromatic  demonstra- 
tion, beyond  the  boundary  of  photography. 

Regarding  the  scientific  nomenclature  which  is 
adopted  for  this  book,  one  word  of  explanation  is 
necessary.  The  names  are  those  of  Dr.  Asa  Gray, 
and  his  successors  connected  with  the  University  of 
Harvard ;  the  addition  of  Dr.  Sargent's  scientific 
names  I  considered  particularly  necessary  in  defer- 
ence to  his  magnificent  work,  The  Silva  of  North 
America,  to  which  we  must  all  of  us  go  for  a  wider 
knowledge  of  tree  life.  All  other  systems  of  no- 
menclature, however  popular  they  may  seem  to  be, 
seem  to  me  both  unnecessary  and  unreliable,  as  well 
as  conducive  of  much  confusion,  especially  to  the 
younger  generation.  We  certainly  are  in  safe  hands 
if  we  depend  upon  the  botanists  of  Harvard  Univer- 
sity.    It  is  not  necessary  to  say  more  than  that. 

F.  Schuyler  Mathews. 

May  1,  1001. 


PEEFACE. 


Possibly  there  are  some  of  us  who  may  not  think 
that  a  leaf  is  a  thing  of  beauty.  We  are  prone  to  use 
the  expression  "  Nothing  but  leaves,"  as  though  leaves 
were  the  worthless,  homely,  and  uninteresting  things 
of  an  otherwise  beautiful  creation.  They  certainly  are 
common,  but  they  are  far  from  commonplace.  If  we 
doubt  this,  let  us  try  to  draw  or  paint  a  single  leaf. 
Only  a  great  artist  can  depict  all  of  some  one  of  its 
manifold  truths ;  one  may  draw  ever  so  carefully  and 
well,  yet  he  can  not  tell  with  the  pencil  or  the  brush 
all  the  truth  and  beauty  of  one  leaf.  Its  color  is  too 
waxen  and  pure  to  be  imitated  by  earthy  pigments ; 
its  outline  is  too  subtile,  its  teeth  are  too  finely  and 
vigorously  formed,  and  its  veins  are  too  infinitely 
complex  for  one  to  copy  with  absolute,  lifelike  ac- 
curacy. No,  it  is  not  possible  to  portray  all  the 
beauty  of  a  leaf  with  the  pencil.    Yet  this  work  of 

Nature's  wonderful   art   is   common :    the   world   is 

vii 


viii       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

filled  with  untold  billions  of  leaves,  no  tvjo  of  tvhieh 
are  exactly  alike. 

It  is  undoubtedly  the  fact  that  we  do  not  fully 
appreciate  either  the  beauty  or  the  usefulness  of 
trees ;  but  after  we  have  become  really  familiar  with 
them,  and  have  learned  readily  to  distinguish  the  dif- 
ferent species,  we  find  ourselves  in  a  new  world  of 
absorbing  interest,  in  which  beauty  and  use  have  ex- 
panded to  proportions  far  beyond  our  previous  con- 
ceptions. 

I  have  ventured  to  draw  the  trees  and  their  leaves 
just  as  I  have  found  them.  My  two  hundred  and  odd 
sketches  were  all  taken  from  Nature,  and  only  sixty 
of  these  from  pressed  specimens  which  were  obtained 
at  the  Harvard  Botanic  Garden.  Yet  I  have  found 
the  world  of  truth  and  beauty,  as  far  as  leaves  are 
concerned,  so  limitless,  that  types  and  rules  seemed 
valuable  only  as  guide-boards  are  on  a  strange  path : 
a  typical  leaf  does  not  reveal  all  the  leaf  truth,  any 
more  than  a  guide-board  notes  all  the  turns  and  twists 
in  the  path. 

I  have  considered  it  neither  wise  nor  necessarv  to 

t/ 

confine  the  drawings  to  a  uniform  scale ;  many  of 
them  are  about  one  half  natural  size,  but  the  re- 
mainder are  adjusted  to  the  limited  space  which  the 
book  allows.  As  often  as  the  case  requires,  the  di- 
mensions of  a  leaf  are  recorded. 


PREFACE.  ix 

The  botanical  names  which  are  given  the  first 
place  are  those  which  are  taken  from  Gray's  Field, 
Forest,  and  Garden  Botany ;  these  find  a  universal 
acceptation  in  this  country.  Those  which  hold  the 
second  place  conform  with  a  recent  system  of  no- 
menclature instituted  by  Prof.  C.  S.  Sargent,  through 
whose  kindness  I  am  enabled  to  make  my  list 
complete. 

The  introduction  of  the  red  spruce  as  a  distinct 
species,  and  not  as  a  variety  of  the  black  spruce,  and 
also  the  expression  of  any  views  regarding  the  char- 
acter of  a  species,  must  not  be  mistaken  for  an  inten- 
tion on  my  part  of  indulging  in  a  botanical  opinion. 
As  a  student  and  lover  of  Nature,  I  must  beg  the 
privilege  of  simply  exercising  a  choice  between  dis- 
puted botanical  points,  which  is,  of  course,  consistent 
with  my  own  profession. 

I  wish  to  acknowledge  the  kind  assistance  received 
from  Dr.  B.  L.  Robinson,  Prof.  L.  H.  Bailey,  and 
Prof.  C.  S.  Sargent,  without  whose  advice  I  could 
never  have  completed  my  work  satisfactorily.  I  am  also 
greatly  indebted  to  Prof.  J.  G.  Jack,  Mr.  C.  E.  Faxon, 
Mr.  Jackson  Dawson,  and  Mr.  Newlin  Williams  for 
their  valuable  suggestions  and  the  acquisition  of  many 
needed  specimens.  Indeed,  without  this  help  it 
would  have  been  impossible  for  me  to  gather  all  the 
material  necessary  to  make  my  list  include  over  two 


X  FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

hundred  trees.  This  is  not  so  very  many  for  one  to 
become  acquainted  with,  and  it  is  at  least  a  service- 
able introduction  to  the  life  of  the  woods. 

The  stillness  of  the  vast  forest,  broken  only  by 
the  silvery,  organ -pipe  notes  of  the  hermit  thrush,  is 
something  so  strangely  opposite  to  the  city's  whirl  and 
confusion,  that  we  think  of  the  wilderness  as  without 
life ;  but  in  reality  it  is  all  life :  the  trees  and  their 
countless  leaves  live  in  a  world  about  wliich  we  know 
little — we  with  our  lives  hemmed  in  by  walls  of  stone. 
But  when  the  summer  comes,  then  the  stifling  air  and 
the  hot  pavements  force  the  truth  upon  us — they  are 
dead !  and,  exhausted  with  the  city's  heat,  we  echo  the 
wish  of  the  poet  Whittier  : 

Bring  us  the  airs  of  hills  and  forests, 
The  sweet  aroma  of  birch  and  pine  ; 

Give  us  a  waft  of  the  north  wind  laden 
With  sweetbrier  odors  and  breath  of  kine. 

F.  Schuyler  Mathews. 

El  Fureidis,  Blair,  Campton,  N.  H., 
May,  1896. 


INTRODUCTION. 


Tree  growth  is  a  constant  source  of  wonder  to 
one  who  contemplates  Nature.  The  rigid  bole,  the 
bracing  and  far-searching  roots,  the  outspreading  top 
with  its  myriad  members  and  its  infinite  variety  of 
form  and  expression,  all  combine  to  make  an  organ- 
ism in  which  strength,  durability,  gracefulness,  and 
tenderness  are  all  at  once  the  dominant  characteristics. 
In  all  the  range  of  Nature  there  is  no  object  which 
so  commonly  inspires  the  tenderer  and  finer  emotions, 
and  which  would  leave  the  earth  so  bare  of  loveliness 
if  it  were  to  be  removed.  Itself  devoid  of  person- 
ality, it  still  lends  itself  to  the  expression  of  all  the 
feelings  of  the  heart.  It  is  gay  or  sad,  warm  or  cold, 
peaceful  or  restive,  the  reflection  of  the  passing  mood 
of  the  observer.  Every  one  loves  the  trees,  though 
he  may  not  know  it,  and  it  often  happens  that  those 
love  them  best  who  know  them  least.  I  mean  to  say 
that  one  who  attempts  to  analyze  the  kinds  and  spe- 
cies may  wholly  overlook  the  tree  itself  in  his  search 


XI 


xii        FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 

for  details.  The  tree  exists  as  an  individuality  wholly 
aside  from  its  name  and  classification  and  botanical 
technicalities.  There  are,  then,  two  ways  of  know- 
ing a  tree.  One  is  the  way  of  human  feeling  and 
sympathy,  through  which  a  tree  becomes  a  part  of 
one's  self,  as  the  sunshine  does.  It  is  identified  with 
every  hallowed  experience.  The  influence  of  its  be- 
nignant branches  throws  a  savor  into  the  commonest 
nooks  and  corners  of  our  lives.  Another  way  to 
know  the  tree  is  the  botanical  or  analytical  way. 
This  method  sternly  scrutinizes  every  detail.  This  is 
essential  to  truth,  but  not  to  feeling.  It  is  so  likely 
to  restrict  and  dwarf  the  vision  and  the  sympathies  as 
to  make  the  tree  but  a  laboratory  filled  with  curiously 
fashioned  mechanisms.  Some  persons  are  slaves  to 
facts.  There  are  botanists,  no  doubt,  who  know  all 
the  kinds  of  trees,  but  who  have  never  seen  the 
greenness  and  verdure  and  sublimeness  of  the  woods. 
Yet,  despite  the  narrow  vision  which  may  come 
from  the  analytical  study  of  plants,  there  is  no  in- 
herent reason  why  the  person  who  traces  the  veins  in 
the  leaf,  counts  the  seeds  in  the  pod,  and  unravels 
the  structure  in  the  wood,  may  not  also  see  the  tree  of 
which  all  these  charming  details  are  but  the  various 
parts.  Fortunately,  the  greater  number  of  persons 
will  always  desire  to  know  the  tree  as  an  entirety; 
but  they  may  enjoy  it  the  more  if  at  the  same  time 


INTRODUCTION.  xiii 

they  have  some  knowledge  of  its  kinships  and  its 
names.  The  name  is  the  index  to  all  that  has  been 
written  about  it, — a  means  of  learning  its  range,  its 
habits,  and  its  uses.  Such  persons  approach  the  tree 
in  a  different  spirit  than  the  botanist  does.  They 
want  an  easy  and  personal  method  of  apprehending 
it.  They  have  no  desire  to  discover  or  record  scien- 
tific facts.  They  are  not  of  the  analytical  turn  of 
mind.  They  simply  want  an  introduction  to  the 
trees  whom  they  meet.  Their  desire  is  as  legiti- 
mate as  the  botanist's,  and  it  is  more  necessary  that 
it  be  satisfied.  The  botanist  can  make  his  own 
helps,  if  need  be.  I  am  glad  of  every  new  book, 
therefore,  which  invites  people  to  see  and  to  know 
Nature.  That  method  of  treatment  is  best  which  in- 
terests the  greatest  number  of  persons.  If  only  the 
statements  are  clear  and  accurate,  the  critic  has  no 
right  to  condemn  the  book.  If  the  book  is  made  for 
the  people,  time  is  the  only  judge  of  its  merits.  As 
foliage  is  the  most  obvious  feature  of  trees,  aside 
from  form,  it  would  seem  that  leaf -forms  afford  the 
most  useful  basis  of  introduction  to  a  common  knowl- 
edge of  trees ;  and  if,  in  addition,  the  artist  draws 
and  describes  the  objects  as  he  sees  them,  the  result 
must  be  beneficent. 

L.  II.  Bailey. 

Cornell  University,  May,  1S9G. 


A  PLAN  FOR  LEAF  IDENTIFICATION. 


All  leaves  may  be  divided  into  five  general  classes,  as  follows: 

I.  Simple  alternate-growing  leaves. 
II.  Simple  opposite-growing  leaves. 

III.  Compound  alternate-growing  leaves. 

IV.  Compound  opposite-growing  leaves. 
V.  Evergreen  leaves,  of  the  Pine  family. 

The  first  four  classes  which  comprise  the  deciduous  leaves  are  sub- 
divided into  two  classes,  as  follows  : 

1.  Without  teeth. 

2.  With  teeth. 

These  two  classes  are  again  subdivided,  as  follows: 

A.  Edge  not  divided  or  cut  into. 

B.  Edge  divided  or  cut  into. 

Class  V  is  subdivided  as  follows  : 

1.  With  long  needles. 

2.  With  short,  flat,  blunt  needles,  or  with  soft  needles. 

3.  With  short,  sharp  needles,  or  with  scales. 

Under  this  general  classification  the  leaves  are  arranged  in  botanical 
succession  through  the  following  chapters : 

I.  Simple  alternate  leaves : 

Edge  not  divided. 
Edge  divided. 
Edge  not  divided. 
Edge  divided. 


1.  Without  teeth,  j 

2.  With  teeth. 


A. 
B. 


Chap.  II. 
Chap.  III. 
Chaps.  IV  to  IX. 
Chaps.  X  to  XIII. 


II.  Simple  opposite  leaves : 

1.  Without  teeth. 

2.  With  teeth. 


Edge  not  divided. 
Edge  not  divided. 
Edge  divided. 

III.  Compound  alternate  leaves  : 


A. 

Ik 


1.  Without  teeth, 

2.  With  teeth. 


(  Leaflets  bordering  main 
j      leaf  stem. 

j  Leaflets  bordering  main 
(      leaf  stem. 


IV.  Compound  opposite  leaves : 

1.  Without     and  j  Leaflets  bordering  main 

with  teeth.      (      leaf  stem. 

2.  With  teeth.  Leaflets  radiating. 

V.  Evergreen  leaves,  of  the  Fine  family  : 

1.  With  long  needles. 

2.  With   short,  flat,  blunt  needles,  or  with 

soft  needles. 

3.  With  short,  sharp  needles,  or  with  scales. 


Chap.  XIV. 
Chap.  XV. 
Chap.  XVI. 


Chap.  XVII. 
Chap.  XVIII. 


Chap.  XIX. 
Chap.  XX. 


Chap.  XXI. 

Chap.  XXII. 
Chap.  XXIII. 


xiv 


COLORED   PRINTS   OF   TREES. 


LIquidambar 

•                  • 

Fran 

FACING 
PAGE 

tispiece 

Tupelo  .... 

•                  • 

.      32 

Sassafras 

•                  • 

.       40 

Paper,  Canoe,  or  White 

Birch     . 

94 

Chestnut 

•                  * 

,     106 

White  Oak  . 

•                                «                                4 

146 

Sugar  Maple 

•                                •                                « 

198 

Black  Walnut      . 

•                                •                                1 

226 

Hickory 

•                     s 

229 

Fir  Balsam  . 

•                     • 

278 

Red  Spruce  . 

•                            •                            4 

282 

Red  Cedar    . 

•                             • 

298 

XV 


wmm 


^^Sfc^*y 


?*     *~V 


THE    PAINTED    BEECH. 


FAMILIAR 
TREES   AND   THEIR   LEAVES. 


CHAPTER   I. 
THE  LEAF  AS  A  BUILDER. 

The  trees  may  be  justly  numbered  among  our 
best  friends,  for  the  simple  reason  that  our  lives  are 
inseparably  connected  with  and  greatly  benefited  by 
them.  But  we  need  to  know  our  leafy  friends 
better.  It  is  not  enough  to  be  able  to  distinguish 
an  ash  from  a  hickory,  or  a  fir  from  a  spruce  ;  it  is 
more  important  by  far  that  we  should  become  ac- 
quainted with  the  form  and  character  of  the  leaves, 
the  fruit,  and  the  bark  and  thus  acquire  a  fuller 
knowledge  of  the  way  the  tree  lives. 

To  know  a  tree  is  to  become  familiar  with  the 
purpose  and  condition  of  its  life.  This  is  revealed  in 
no  small  measure  by  the  leaves.  The  needle  of  the 
pine  enables  the  tree  to  withstand  a  hurricane  on  a 
mountain  top,  yet  its  slender  figure  is  perfectly 
adapted  to  the  task  of  gathering  light  and  air  for  the 


2 


FAMILIAR  TREES   AND   THEIR   L WAVES. 


tree's  life.     The  broad-leaved  buttonwood  would  fall 
before  the  gale  which  the  pine  successfully  weathers. 


"  The  rough  and  fuzzy  leaf  of  the  Slippery  Elm." 


THE   LEAF   AS   A   BUILDER. 


Not  less  plainly  does  the  diversity  of  character  in 
a  leaf   reveal  the  diversity  of   tree  life  itself.     No 
two   leaves  are  exactly  alike ;    no  two 
trees  are  exactly  alike.      There  are  spe- 
cific as  well  as  generic  differ- 
ences    which      are      strongly 
marked.      One    tree     leads    a 
rugged,    wild,    and    struggling 
life  ;  another  an  easy,  luxurious 
life.     The  rough  and  fuzzy  leaf 
of     the    slip- 
pery elm,   the 
silky    leaf    of 
the  beech,  the 
shiny   leaf   of 
the  gray  birch, 
these    are    all 
widely  differ- 
ent ;  but  there  are  also  dis- 
tinct   differences    between 
the  leaves  of  different  kinds 
of  birches,  elms,  and  maples. 

Still,  there  are  puzzling 
similarities,  and  one  is  often 
compelled  to  study  minute 
details  in  order  to  make  sure 
of  a  particular  species.  " The sUky  leaf  of  the Beech" 


FAMILIAR  TREES  AXD   THEIR  LEAVES. 


Nyssa  biflora; 
usually  two  berries. 


We  find  no  more  than  jnst  so  many  berries  on  a 
stem,  and  this  fact  decides  a  species ;  the  leaves  grow 

just  so  many  in  a  cluster, 
and   this    decides  anoth- 
er species ;    the  bark    is 
marked  thus  and  so,  and 
there  is  no  further  doubt 
about  yet  another  species. 
It  is  plain,  therefore, 
that  by  comparative  ex- 
amination we  can  decide 
beyond         peradventure 
what   the   tree  is  by  its  leaf,  its  fruit,   or  its  bark. 
But  it  is  with  the  leaves  that  we  have  chiefly  to  do ; 
in    almost    all   cases   their   assistance   is 
sufficient  for  the  identification  of  the 
tree.     I  have  consequently  arranged 
them  in  the  succeeding    chapters 
according   to   a  progression  from 
simple      to      complex 


forms. 

Fig.  A  is  the  sim- 
plest form  of  a  leaf; 
it  is  without    divisions 


Nyssa  uniflora  ; 
not  more  than  one  berry. 


and  has  an  entire  and  unbroken  edo;e.  But  this  is 
not  all  which  we  must  look  at ;  it  is  a  most  important 
fact   to   know  how   the   leaf  grew.      Did  it   spring 


THE   LEAF  AS   A  BUILDER. 


from  the  twig  in  alternate  order  with  its  neighbors, 
or  did  it  grow  opposite  a  neighbor  ?      Fig.  B  shows 

how  leaves  grow  alternate- 
ly ;   but  Fig.  C  also  shows 
how    alternately  -  growing 
leaves  sometimes  double  up, 
and,    growing 
thus  in  pairs, 
appear   to   be 
opposite.    But 


it    is   the   main   brcmcMet  to 
vg  which    the    term  "  opposite ' 

I  \xm  applies,  and  Fig.  D  illustrates 

the  way  opposite  leaves  seem 
to  spring  out  from  either  side 
of  the  branchlet. 

The  next  simple  form  of  a 
leaf  is    one  which   is  divided  or  u  cut  into,"  but  is 


Fig.  A.— Catalpa  Leaf. 


6 


FAMILIAR  TREES   AND   THEIR   LEAVES. 


Fig.  B.— Yellow  Birch. 


THE   LEAF  AS  A  BUILDER. 


Fig.  C.-Black  Birch. 


8 


FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


Fig.  D.— Striped  Maple. 


THE   LEAF  AS   A   BUILDER. 


9 


Fig.  E.—  Sassafras  Leaf. 


still  without  a  toothed 
edge.  The  lohed  leaf  of 
the  sassafras  is  a  good 
illustration  of  this  type 
(see  Fig.  E). 

The  toothed  leaf  of 
the  yellow  birch  (see  Fig. 
B)  comes  next  among  the 
simpler  forms  ;  but  even 
this  type  is  not  quite  as 
simple    as    that    of    the 

beech  leaf  (see  the  second  drawing  in  this  chapter),  for 
the  birch  as  well  as  the  slippery-elm  leaf  is  double- 
toothed,  while  the    beech   leaf  is  the  plain- 
est, shallowest-toothed  affair  which  Nature 
has  designed.     Perhaps  Viburnum 
dentatum,  which  will  be  found 
in  a  succeeding  chapter,  has 
a  leaf  almost   correspond- 
ingly simple,  but  the  teeth 
are  cut  deeper,   and  the 
veining  is  not  nearly  so 
plain. 

The  silver-maple  leaf 
comes  next  in  order  (see 
Fig.  F);   this  leaf  is  both 

divided    and     toothed,     but     t^  [tio.  F.-Silver-Maple  Leaf. 


10  FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


THE   LEAF  AS  A   BUILDER. 


11 


it  is  an  extreme  type.     A  less  pronounced  variety  of 
this  sort  of  leaf  is  Fig.   G ;    here  there  are  hardly 


Fio.  H.— White  Ash. 


any  teeth  at  all,  and  the  few  are  large  enough  to  be 
called  "  divisions,"  or,  better  yet,  subdivisions. 


12 


FAMILIAR  TREES   AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


Fig.  I.— Pignut 


THE   LEAP  AS  A   BUILDER.  13 

Next  in  order  comes  a  compound  leaf  without 
teeth,  and  following  it  one  with  teeth.  (Figs.  II  and 
I  illustrate  these  two  types  perfectly.)  Lastly  comes 
the  horse-chestnut  leaf,  which  has  a  radiating  form 
(see  Fig.  J),  which  is  the  extreme  type  of  complexity 
in  a  leaf. 

These  types  comprise  all  the  leaves  of  trees  out- 
side of  the  pine  family ;  the  needle  leaves  of  the 
latter  are  too  simply  formed  to  require  explanations 
beyond  those  given  in  the  chapters  devoted  to  the 
evergreens.  The  possession  of  a  simple  method 
whereby  we  may  identify  a  tree  by  its  leaf  is  a 
stepping  stone  to  a  better  knowledge  of  the  tree 
itself.  It  seems  a  strange  fact  that  we  do  not  fully 
comprehend  the  great  value  of  the  billions  and 
billions  of  leaves  that  clothe  the  vast  forests  which, 
as  time  progresses,  are  slowly  disappearing  before 
the  axe.  The  cubic  feet  of  lumber  which  a  tree 
yields  are  not  nearly  as  valuable  to  us  as  the  leaves 
which  the  living  tree  puts  forth  season  after  season. 

The  greatest  sphere  of  usefulness  which  a  tree 
occupies  is  connected  with  its  life.  It  is  a  great  air- 
purifier  ;  it  absorbs  from  the  atmosphere  the  carbonic- 
acid  gas  which  is  poisonous  to  us ;  it  holds  and  slowly 
dispenses  moisture  which  the  parched  air  needs  ;  it 
gives  out  the  ozone  (or  oxygen  in  an  active  electro- 
negative condition)  which  is  peculiarly  conducive  to 


14  FAMILIAR  TREES   AND   THEIR   LEAVES. 


Fio.  J.— Horse  Chestnut  Leaf. 


THE   LEAF   AS  A   BUILDER.  15 

our  health  ;  and  it  modifies  heat  which  would  other- 
wise be  overpowering.  Step  into  the  thick  woods 
from  an  open  space  on  a  very  hot  day,  and  imme- 
diate relief  is  experienced  from  the  intense  heat. 
This  is  not  wholly  the  result  of  shade  furnished 
by  the  trees ;  much  of  it  proceeds  from  the  modifi- 
cation of  the  air  through  the  breathing  of  the  tree 
leaves.  These  leaves  not  only  absorb  heat  and  sun- 
light, but  also  carbonic-acid  gas,  and  through  tiny 
channels  transmit  them  to  the  growing:  wood  fiber 
of  the  tree. 

The  fact  is,  a  tree  is  built  up  far  more  by  the  sun 
and  the  atmosphere  than  it  is  by  the  soil  from  which 
it  grows.  In  the  delicate  structure  of  the  leaf,  which, 
upon  close  examination,  we  will  see  is  composed  of  a 
complicated  net  work  of  nervelike  "  veins,"  carbonic- 
acid  gas  is  broken  up  into  carbon,  which  is  retained 
by  the  tree  to  form  its  woody  structure,  and  into 
oxygen,  which  is  liberated  and  passes  into  the  atmos- 
phere. Each  leaf,  therefore,  is  a  builder  and  an  air- 
regulator  of  a  nature  which  is  beneficial  to  us.  Its 
capacity  for  heat  and  sunshine  is  something  astonish- 
ing. I  have  estimated  that  a  certain  sugar  maple  of 
large  proportions,  which  grows  near  my  cottage,  puts 
forth  in  one  season  about  four  hundred  and  thirty- 
two  thousand  leaves  ;  these  leaves  combined  present 
a  surface  to  sunlight  of  about  twentv-one  thousand 


16         FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 

six  hundred  square  feet,  or  an  area  equal  to  pretty 
nearly  half  an  acre.  Every  inch  of  this  expanse 
breathes  in  life  for  the  tree,  and  out  health  for 
man,  while  it  absorbs  in  the  aggregate  an  enormous 
amount  of  heat  and  sunlight.  In  time  of  rain  it  also 
holds  the  moisture,  and  allows  it  to  evaporate  by 
slow  decrees  when  hot  davs  return.  The  forests  are 
vast  sponges,  which,  through  the  agency  of  leaves, 
soak  up  the  beneficent  raindrops  and  compel  them  to 
pass  slowly  through  shaded  channels  to  the  parched 
lands  beyond.  It  is  indeed  quite  impossible  to  over- 
estimate the  value  of  the  billions  and  billions  of 
leaves  which  work  and  build  for  the  benefit  of  hu- 
manity. Only  forty  per  cent  of  a  tree  is  utilized  by 
the  woodsman  ;  the  pity  of  it  is  that  the  waste  is  so 

fearfully  out  of  proportion  to  the  gain.  I  do  not  say 
that  a  wTaste  of  leaves  is  a  very  serious  loss,  but  I  do 

say  that  the  wanton  destruction  of  more  than  half 
the  tree,  with  its  thousands  of  leaf -workers,  is  inex- 
cusably careless. 

A  tree  is  most  likely  felled  at  an  immature  age  ;  * 
how  much  larger  it  would  grow  if  given  an  extra  ten 
years'  lease  of  life  some  of  us  would  be  astonished  to 
learn.     In  that  time  a  sugar  maple  I  call  to  mind,  at 

*  Spruce  and  pine  "sticks"  (the  trimmed  logs)  are  floated 
down  the  Merrimack  River  to  the  lowland  mills  by  thousands,  not 
one  of  which  measures  more  than  nine  or  ten  inches  in  diameter. 


THE   LEAP   AS   A   BUILDER.  17 

first  but  eight  feet  high,  grew  to  measure  fully  thirty 
feet,  and  expanded  over  a  space  three  times  as  great 
as  that  it  originally  occupied.  An  elm,  now  probably 
thirty  years  old,  in  the  same  length  of  time  added 
fifteen  feet  to  its  stature,  and  spread  ten  feet  in  the 
radius  of  a  circle.  This  tree  is  before  me  as  I  write. 
Another,  which  stood  four  feet  high  in  1870,  and 
twenty  feet  in  1885,  now  reaches  over  thirty-five  feet 
above  the  point  it  started  from.  A  white  pine,  which 
ten  years  ago  had  a  stem  as  thick  as  a  portiere  pole, 
and  a  height  only  a  trifle  superior  to  my  own,  I  can 
now  walk  under  without  stooping ;  its  trunk  meas- 
ures twenty-three  inches  in  circumference,  and  its 
topmost  bough  is  twenty  feet  above  the  ground. 
Four  firs,  which  ten  years  ago  measured  twelve  feet, 
now  stand  over  twenty  feet  high.  A  silver  maple, 
which  I  planted  when  it  was  but  four  inches  high,  in 
ten  years  grew  nearly  twenty  feet.  Two  sugar  ma- 
ples, which  looked  like  bean  poles  when  they  were  set 
out  in  1875,  are  now  symmetrically  egg-shaped,  and 
reach  far  above  the  ridgepole  of  the  neighboring 
house  ;  in  ten  years'  time  I  estimate  that  these  trees 
expanded  six  feet  in  all  directions,  and  their  trunks 
nearly  doubled  their  diameter. 

The  imperceptible  and  irresistible  force  with 
which  a  tree  grows  I  have  found  curiously  demon- 
strated in  a  certain  butternut,  around  which  was  built 


18  FAMILIAR  TREES   AND   THEIR   LEAVES. 

a  rustic  arbor  some  ten  years  ago.  The  roof  was  un- 
wisely fastened  close  about  the  trunk,  to  exclude  the 
rain  ;  now  the  rafters  are  forced  asunder  fully  six 
inches  on  either  side  of  the  tree,  and  an  opening  of 
that  width  shows  itself  in  the  arbor  roof.  What  is 
most  astonishing  is  the  way  three  or  four  six-inch 
iron  spikes  have  retained  their  original  position, 
while  the  wood  has  been  forced  (regardless  of  the 
nail-heads)  entirely  beyond  them. 

According  to  recent  tests,  it  takes  a  pulling  force 
of  six  tons  to  dislodge  a  six-inch  nail.  Think,  then, 
of  a  tree  growing  with  an  irresistible  pushing  force 
of  thirty-six  thousand  pounds,  and  this  merely  the 
trunk  expansion  !  It  is  remarkable,  also,  to  see  how 
a  tree  apparently  growing  out  of  a  bowlder  holds  it 
with  an  iron  grasp,  as  its  vigorous  roots  (much  in  the 
way  one's  fingers  encircle  a  ball)  pass  over  it  on  their 
way  down  to  the  nourishing  soil  below.  There  are 
several  trees  growing  this  way  in  the  charming  woods 
opposite  the  Flume  House,  Franconia  Mountains ; 
one  may  see  them  beside  the  path  leading  to  the 
Pool. 

The  life  of  a  tree  is  not  only  interesting,  but  it  is 
of  more  value  to  us  than  we  can  easily  estimate.  The 
loss  of  large  areas  of  air-vivifying  leaves  is  a  menace 
to  our  health.  Forests  prevent  sudden  changes  of 
temperature  in  all  seasons  of  the  year ;  they  decrease 


THE   LEAF   AS   A   BUILDER.  i;< 

the  frequency  of  destructive  frosts  in  early  autumn, 
and  they  maintain  an  equable  climate  in  winter;  they 
absorb  and  give  out  heat  more  slowly  than  the  open 
fields,  and  they  act  as  a  screen  to  land  lying  to  the 
leeward  of  blasting  winter  winds.  When  we  interest 
ourselves  in  tree  life  we  begin  to  realize  how  great  a 
worker  and  builder  the  leaf  is.  It  builds  the  tree, 
and  it  works  for  our  benefit.  So  intimately  is  it  con- 
nected with  the  tree  life,  that  from  it  proceeds  a  tiny 
channel,  or  nerve,  so  to  speak,  down  the  trunk  to  the 
very  root  of  the  tree.  John  Ruskin,  in  Modern 
Painters,  vol.  iv,  speaks  thus  of  the  leaf- worker  :  "  It 
leads  a  life  of  endurance,  effort,  and  various  success, 
issuing  in  various  beauty  ;  and  it  connects  itself  with 
the  whole  previous  edifice  by  one  sustaining  thread, 
continuing  its  appointed  piece  of  work  all  the  way 
from  top  to  root." 


CHAPTEE  II. 

I.  Simple  Alternate  Leaves. 

1.  Without  teeth.  A.  Edge  undivided. 

THE  MAGNOLIAS,  ETC. 

The  simplest  possible  leaf  which  grows  on  a  tree 
^-1  ought  rather  to  say,  which  helps  to  build  one — 
we  will  find  on  the  Southern  magnolia.  This  tree, 
which  leads  all  others  in  botanical  classification,  puts 
forth  a  leaf  of  the  plainest  design  we  can  discover  in 
Nature — a  leaf  of  an  elliptical  figure  with  pointed 
ends,  plain  as  the  plainest  New  England  farmhouse 
without  cornice,  dormer,  or  column,  and  quite  as  re- 
freshingly simple. 

The  magnolias  are  distinctly  Southern  trees,  with 
dark,  shining,  evergreen  leaves,  which  are  more  or 
less  out  of  tune  with  a  Northern  environment.  Just 
as  the  sober  olive  has  its  perfect  setting  in  the  bril- 
liant light  and  color  of  Italy  and  Syria,  so  the  deep- 
hued  magnolia  finds  its  most  congenial  surroundings 
in  the  sunny  South ;  and  no  doubt  Nature  is  aware 

of  this  fact,  for  she  does  not  allow  the  trees  to  ex- 

20 


THE   MAGNOLIAS,   ETC. 


—  i 


pand  to  their  normal  size  in  the  North.  The  mag- 
nolia in  New  Orleans  is  quite  a  giant  compared  with 
his  fellow  which  has  been  exiled  to  bleak  New  En^- 
land.  Away  from  the  Southern  swamps  or  the  pictur- 
esque streets  and  gardens  of  Mobile  and  New  Or- 
leans, separated  from  its  natural  associates,  the  pecan, 
cypress,  and  fig  tree,  the  magnolia  can  not  be  seen 
in  the  prime  of  its  strength  and  beauty. 

The  finest  of  the  species  is  the  great - 
Great-flowered 

Magnolia,  or      flowered  magnolia,  or  bull  bay.     In 
Bull  Bay.   tlie   g011th  this 

Magnolia  beautiful 

granaijiora, 
Magnolia  fatida.        tree 


Magnolia  graudiflora 


reaches  a  height  of  from  60  to  80  feet;  its  trunk, 
which  is  not  infrequently  as  much  as  four  feet  in 
diameter,  is  of  a  harsh  brown  gray  color,  and  is  cov- 
ered with  scales  about  an  inch  in  length.     The  deep- 


22 


FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


green  leaf  is  from  five  to  eight  inches  long,  thick, 
shiny  above,  and  somewhat  rusty  beneath.  The  ma- 
jestic and  lilylike  flowers  measure  seven  or  eight 
inches  across ;  they  are  cream-white,  exceedingly  fra- 
grant, and  bloom  from  April  to  June  in  the  South, 
but  as  late  as  early  August  in  the  North. 

The  finest  growth  of  this  tree,  according  to  Prof. 
Sargent,  is  in  western  Louisiana,  where  it  forms  a 
conspicuous  feature  of  the  forest.*  It  grows  wild  in 
river  swamps  and  pine  barrens  as  far  north  as  the 
Carolinas,  and  is  a  most  familiar  and  beautiful 
object  in  the  streets  and  gardens  of  the 
Southern  cities.  This  great-flow- 
ered magnolia,  the  only  perfectly 
ever-green  species,  is  not  hardy 
in  the  North — a  pity,  for  it  is 
certainly  the  most  magnificent 
flowering  tree  of  our  country. 

The     small 
magnolia,  or 

Magnolia  qlauca.  ,  -i 

sweet  bay,  is 
a  slenderer  tree,  frequently 
reduced  to  the  condition  of 
a  shrub  in  the  North,  but 
southward      it     attains 


Small  Magnolia- 
Sweet  Bay. 


Magnolia  glauca. 


a 


*  Vide  Silva  of  North  America,  C.  S.  Sargent. 


THE  MAGNOLIAS,  ETC.  23 

height  of  50  feet  or  more,  and  has  a  trunk  two  or 
three  feet  in  diameter  if  circumstances  are  favorable 
to  a  perfect  development.  Its  bark  is  light  brown- 
gray  ;  the  new  twigs  are  decidedly  green,  and  turn 
a  ruddy  hue  as  they  grow  older.  The  leaves  are 
thick,  oval-shaped,  obtuse,  and  at  most  not  over  six 
inches  long;  the  middle  rib  is  very  prominent,  the 
6tem  slender,  and  the  surface  below  very  whitish.  In 
the  South  the  old  leaves  remain  on  the  tree  until  the 
new  ones  appear ;  in  the  North  they  fall  in  Novem- 
ber. The  cream-white  flowers  are  much  the  same 
shape  as  the  yellow  pond  lily,  roundish,  and  bloom 
from  May  to  August ;  they  are  also  fragrant.  This 
tree,  frequently  seen  in  gardens,  in  its  wild  state  is 
never  found  north  of  Gloucester,  Mass.,  and  is  mere- 
ly local  there ;  it  appears  also  beside  the  red  maple 
and  andromeda  bush  in  the  deep  swamps  of  New 
Jersey ;  from  there  it  extends  southward  near  the 
coast,  and  forms  with  the  loblolly  and  red  bay  almost 
impenetrable  thickets  in  Florida,  especially  in  the 
interior  swamps  and  pine  barrens.* 

Cucumber  Tree.      ^he    cucumber    tree    in    the    South 
Magnolia  grows  from  50  to  90  feet  high,  but 

acuminata.  .  i  n  ,-, 

attains  only  a  moderate   size  in  the 
North.     In  beauty  it  is  not  to  be  compared  with  the 

*  Vide  Silva  of  North  America,  C.  S.  Sargent. 


24         FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 

luxuriant,  sweet-flowered  magnolias.     The  somewhat 
tulip-shaped  flowers,  which  come  late  in  spring,  are 
three  inches  wide,  greenish 
yellow-white,  and  fragrant. 


Magnolia  acuminata 


The  leaves  are  rather  thin,  dark  green  above,  lighter 
green  and  slightly  downy  below,  and  they  measure 
from  seven  to  ten  inches  in  length.  They  are  widely 
distributed  along  the  branch  and  not  clustered  at  the 
end.  The  orange-red  seeds  of  the  peculiar,  curved 
fruit -cone  ripen  in  autumn ;  *  when  green,  the  cone 
resembles  a  small  cucumber ;  it  is  about  two  or  three 
inches  long.  The  wood  is  soft,  durable,  and  light ; 
it  has  been  extensively  used  for  pump  logs  and  water 
troughs.  This  tree  grows  wild  from  western  New 
York  southwestward  to  Arkansas,  and  southward 
to  southern  Alabama ;   it  is  one   of   the   largest   of 

*  The  seeds,  on  being  released  from  the  pods,  hang  suspended 
by  little  white  filaments,  like  those  of  the  great  and  small  mag- 
nolias, 


TTTE   MAGNOLIAS,   ETC. 


25 


the  magnolias,  and  is  a  rapid  grower,  but  its  nar- 
row-petaled  flowers  are  rather  poor-looking  in  com- 
parison with  the  beautiful  white  ones  of  the  two 
foregoing  species. 

Yellow  Cucumber    Tlie  ^ellow  cucumber  tree  has  really 
Tree.  beautiful  lemon-yellow  flowers,  which 

Magnolia  cordata.      form    ft  damt       co]qt    conij,jna_ 

Magnolia  d  ^ 

tion  with  its  rich  foliage.     This  tree 
is   a   native   of   Georgia   and    South 


acuminata, 
var.  cordata. 


Carolina ;  it  has  been  cul- 
tivated in  gardens  for 
nearly    a   century, 
and   its   beauty  is       ^ 
deserving  of  close 
attention.       It    is 
found    to     be      quite 
hardy  as  far  north  as 
Boston,  where  it  sur- 
vives the  cold  of  that 
trying  climate.*     The 
leaves   are   similar  to 
those  of    the   foregoing 
species,    but    they    are 

Magnolia  cordata. 

broadly  oval,  decidedly 

woolly-white  beneath,  and  less  pointed  at  the  ends. 


*  There  are  two  specimens  of  this  tree  in  the  botanic  garden 
of  Harvard  University. 


26 


FAMILIAR   TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


Gray  says  they  are  seldom  cordate  *  (heart-shaped  at 
the   base).      The   yellow   flowers   are   often    slightly 

streaked   with    red.      The   tree 
grows  from  20  to  50  feet  high. 


Great-leaved 
Magnolia. 

Magnolia 

macrophylla. 


The  great-leaved 


magnolia  is  a 
Southern  tree, 
with  huge,  deep- 
green  leaves  (sometimes  not  less 
than  thirty  inches  long)  clus- 
tered at  the  summit  of  the  branches ; 
they  are  also  woolly -white  beneath, 
and  are  narrowed  down  to  two  small 
scallops  at  the  base.  The  bell-shaped 
flowers  are  truly  Brobdingnagian,  for 
they  measure  fully  eight  and  even 
twelve  inches  across.  They  are  mildly 
fragrant,  and  are  cream-white,  of  a  very 
soft  tone,  with  a  dull  pinkish  spot  at  the 
base  of  the  petal.  The  tree  grows  from  30  to  50 
feet  high,  and  is  found  in  its  wild  state  from  Ken- 
tucky and  North  Carolina  southward.  It  is  culti- 
vated as  far  north  as  Boston,  where,  in  Jamaica 
Plain,  one  of  the  suburbs,  there  are  two  beautiful 


Magnolia 
macrophylla 


*  The  species    name  Magnolia  cordata  was  given  it  by  the 
younger  Michaux ;  but  Prof.  Sargent  considers  this  magnolia  a 


variety  of  31.  acuminata. 


MAGNOLIA    MACROPHYLLA. 
From  a  photograph  by  Mr.  A.  K   Wilmarth,  Jamaica  Plain.  .Mass. 


TIIE   MAGNOLIAS,   ETC.  27 

specimens  about  20  feet  high,  some  of  whose  flow- 
ers measure  nine  inches  in  diameter. 

Umbrella  Tree.      ^he  umbrella  tree  gets  its  name  from 
Magnolia  Umbrella,  the  resemblance  which  the  leafy  ends 

Maqnolia  tripetala.         c    ,■%       ■,  -i         i  ,       ?1 

J  r  oi  the  branches  bear  to  an  umbrella, 

the  leaves  being  arranged  in  a  circle,  with  veins  and 
stems  radiating  from  a  common  center ;  the  umbrella- 
like  appearance  is  readily  per- 
ceived by  one  who  stands 
below.      It    was    first  ^ 


m 


Magnolia  tripetala. 


called  parasol  or  umbrella  tree  by  the  early  settlers 
in  the  South.  The  leaves  are  from  eighteen  to 
twenty  inches  long,  deep  green  above  and  lighter 
green  beneath;  they  are  downy  (on  the  under  side) 
when  young,  but  soon  grow  smooth.  The  cream- 
white  flowers,  six  to  eight  inches  across,  with  rather 


28 


FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


narrow  petals,  have  a  strong  and  somewhat  dis- 
agreeable odor  ;  they  bloom  in  May  and  June.  The 
height  of  the  umbrella  tree  is  from  30  to  40  feet ; 
its  branches  are  usually  contorted,  and  after  sprawl- 
ing out  quite  a  distance  from  the  trunk  they  turn  up 
and  grow  nearly  parallel  with  it.  The  bark  is  light 
gray,  smooth,  but  sometimes  blistered. 

The  tree  is  found  in  parks  and  gardens  ;  it  grows 
wild  from  New  York  southward,  along  the  Alleghany 
Mountains,  and   attains  its  greatest 
size  in  the  valleys   extending 
from    the    western    slopes 
of     the     Great      Smol 


Mountains    in   Tennes- 
see ;  southward  its  limit 
is  central  Alabama,  and 
westward,     southwest- 
ern Arkansas. 

Ear-leaved  The  ear- 

Umbrella  Tree. 


Magnolia 

Fraseri. 


leaved 
umbrel- 
la tree  grows  from 
30  to  40  feet  high. 
The  flowers,  six  to 
nine  inches  in  diam- 
eter, are  cream - 
white,  slightly  sweet- 


Magnolia  Fraseri. 


THE  MAGNOLIAS,  ETC. 


29 


scented,  and  bloom  from  May  to  June.  The  leaf, 
scarcely  a  foot  long,  is  similar  to  that  of  the  umbrel- 
la tree,  but  is  conspicuously  heart-shaped  at  the  base. 

This  tree  is 
found  from  south- 
western Virginia 
southward  ;  west- 
ward it  extends  to 
the  valley  of  the 
Pearl  Eiver,  Mis- 
sissippi ;  and  it  is 
seen  in  cultivation  as  far 
north  as  New  York  city. 
Papaw -Custard  The  papaw,  or  ens- 
Apple,  tard  apple,  lias  a 
leaf  similar  in 
of  Magnolia  Umbrel- 
la, and  is  another  Southern  tree 
which  does  not  attain  its  normal  proportions  in  the 
North.  In  rich  soil  and  a  warm  climate  the  tree 
will  grow  to  a  height  of  35  feet  or  more.  It  is 
sometimes  cultivated,  but  grows  wild  from  New 
York  southward,  and  westward  to  southern  Mich- 
igan and  Texas.  The  best  growth  is  found  in  the 
valleys  of  streams  which  are  tributary  to  the  lower 
Ohio  River.  Nearly  all  parts  of  the  unfortunate 
tree  smell  badly,  including  the  flowers,   which    are 


i  mil  La  triloba. 


30 


FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR   LEAVES. 


prettily  triple -formed  and  have  a  soft,  purplish-red 
hue.  The  leaves  are  ei^ht  to  twelve  inches  lono- 
thin,  rusty-downy  beneath  when  young,  but  event- 
ually smooth.  The  straight  trunk,  perhaps  ten  inches 
in  diameter,  has  smooth,  shiny,  silver-gray  bark  ;  the 
branches,  marked  lengthwise  with  little  grooves,  are 
slender  and  spreading,  with  bark  of  a  light  reddish- 
brown  color.  The  fruit  of  this  tree  is  rather  shape- 
less and  bulky,  three  to  five  inches  long,  yellow  and 
soft  inside,  dark  brown  and  wrinkled  outside,  and  has 
a  fragrant,  sweet  taste  greatly  prized  by  the  Southern 
negro.  It  is  ripe  in  September  or  early  October. 
In  the  unripe  condition  the  greenish  skin  is  smooth, 
with  a  bloom,  and  the  pulp  is  disagreeable  to  the 
taste.  It  is  said  that  the  fruit  has  the  most  deli- 
cate flavor  after  having  been  frozen.  In  the  South, 
where  the  trees  are  common,  the  fruit  is  brought  into 

market;  but,  at  best,  those 
who    like    it   must    confess 
to  an  acquired  taste. 

Bed  Bud— Judas       ™ne       rec* 
Tree.  bud    is    a 

Cercis  Canadensis. 


very  small 
tree,  40  or  50,  but   com- 
monly not   over  25    feet 
high,     famous     for     the 
beauty   of  its   dainty   clusters   of   small   pale   crim- 


THE   MAGNOLIAS,    ETC. 


31 


son-magenta  flowers,  the  petals  lighter,  which  ap- 
pear from  March  till  May  before  the  leaves  are  out. 
These  leaves  are  four  inches  long,  dark  green,  smooth 
and  glossy,  and  perfectly  heart-shaped  ;  they  turn 
yellow  in  the  fall.  The  French  Canadians  use  the 
acid  flowers  in  their  salads  and  pickles.  The  name 
"  Judas  tree '  is  handed  down  to  us  by  tradition  ; 
in  olden  times  it  was  believed  that  this  tree  was  the 
one  on  which  Judas  hanged  himself.  The  red  bud  is 
common  from  New  York  southward  and  westward 
to  Alabama  and  Missouri,  and  is  most  abundant  in 
Indian  Territory  and  eastern  Texas ;  it  is  also  fre- 
quently seen  in  cultivation.  There  is  a  very  pretty 
but  small  specimen  opposite  the  Public  Library  on 
Millmont  Street,  Roxbury,  Mass. 

The  tupelo  or  sour 


Tupelo— Sour  Gum. 
Nyssa  sylvatlca. 


gum  reac 


its  finest 
proportions  in  the 
South,  but  it  is 
more  or  less  com- 
mon from  central 
New  York  south- 
ward, and  westward  to  Michigan.  In  the  extreme 
Northeast  it  may  occasionally  be  found  as  far  as 
Vermont  and  southern  Maine ;  but  I  have  never 
seen   the   tree   in   New  Hampshire.      It   is  medium 


Tupelo  (Nyssa  sylvatica). 


32         FAMILIAR   TREES   AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

in  size  (rarely  it  grows  45  feet  high),  and  has  hori- 
zontal branches,  a  rough  grayish  trunk,  and  ellipti- 
cal pointed  leaves  about  two  to  five  inches  long, 
dark  shiny  green  above  but  lighter  below.  The 
leaves  turn  a  brilliant  dark  red  in  the  autumn.  The 
wood  is  exceedingly  close-grained,  tough,  and  hard 

to  split ;  for  this  reason 
it  is  employed  in  the 
making  of  hubs,  pul- 
leys, and  mauls.  In 
Virginia,  it  is  much  used 
by  the  ship-builders. 

The  leaf  of  the 
"Water  Tupelo. 

Nyssa  Uflora.         Water   tuPel°  is 

Nyssa  syivatica,        very  nearly  like 

Water  Tupelo.  TaK  Uflora. 

that  of  the 
foregoing  species,  but  it  is  smaller  ;  we  must  rely, 
therefore,  on  other  means  for  the  identification  of  the 
tree.  It  grows  from  the  pine  barrens  of  New  Jersey 
southward.  The  blue  fruit  is  smaller,  and  the  stone 
is  decidedly  flattened  and  strongly  ridged  ;  tliis  is  not 
the  case  in  the  other  tupelo,  which  bears  a  larger  fruit 
with  a  rounder  stone  (ovoid)  scarcely  ridged  at  all. 
Large  Tupelo.  The  large  tupelo  bears  a  leaf  from 
Nyssa  uniflora.       four   to   ten   inches    long,    which   is 

Nyssa  aquatica.  , .  •,     i  .-,     j  j 

9  sometimes     angularly    toothed,    and 

often  quite  downy  beneath ;   it  is  also  apt  to  be  a 


1 


SOUR  GUM  OR  TUPELO. 

Bucks  Co.,  Penn. 


THE   MAGNOLIAS,    ETC. 


33 


Large  Tupelo. 


trifle  heart-shaped  at  the  base.     This  tree  bears  soli- 
tary flowers,  and  fruit  aboul  an  inch  long  with  a  flat- 
tened  and   ridged    Btone.      Ir    is 

found  in  water  or  (lecp  Bwamps, 
from  Virginia  and  Illinois 
southward.     These  three  tu- 

pelos  may  easily  be  dis- 
tinguished apart, 
by  reason  of  their 
different  fruit  and 
flowers  ;  \'<>r  in- 
stance, one  can 
not  find  JVi/ssa  biflora  with  more  than  three  flowers 
on  one  stem,  and  in  the  greatest  number  of  cases  it 
has  only  two.  The  single  flower  or  fruit  also  unmis- 
takably indicates  J\T.  aquatica. 

„     .  The    persimmon,    sometimes     called 

Persimmon.  L 

Diospyros  date  plum,  is  distinctively  a  Southern 

Virginicma.  ^ree,  although  it  may  be  found  as  far 
north  as  Long  Island  or  southern  Connecticut  ;*  but 
only  in  the  South  will  the  tree  be  seen  fully  devel- 
oped ;  here  it  grows,  when  unobstructed,  4<>  or  50 
feet  high,  with  widely  spreading  branches;  in  the 
forests  it  attains  a  height  of  100  feet  or  more.  The 
dark-green  leaf  is  from  two  to  five  inches  long,  rather 

*  The  specimen  which  1  have  sketched  grows  in  Bucks  County, 
Pa.,  and  is  over  40  feet  in  height. 


3±         FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 


thick,  smooth  and  shining  above,  lighter  colored  and 
a  trifle  downy  below ;  the  ribs  are  greatly  curved  and 
irregular.      The  bark  of   the  trunk  is  dark 
reddish    brown,    deeply    divided    into 
rather  square -looking  sections. 

The     short-stemmed,    plumlike 
fruit,  which  is  about  an  inch  or 
a  little  more  in  diameter,  rip- 
ens in  mid-summer  south- 
ward, but  not  until  No- 
vember   northward. 
It  is  pale  orange 
of  a  ruddy  tone 
when      fully 
ripe,        and 
has  a  pleas- 
ant,     sweet 
flavor    after 

frOSt,*  Which  Persimmon. 

seems   neces- 
sary to  render  it  edible.     One  rash  bite  of  a  per- 
simmon before  it  has  reached  its  fullest  development 


*  This,  however,  is  a  matter  of  opinion.  There  are  those  who 
insist  that  the  fruit  is  best  ripened  before  frost,  for,  although  the 
latter  removes  the  disagreeable  astringency,  it  also  'destroys  the 
flavor,  particularly  if  the  fruit  has  not  reached  a  certain  stage  of 
maturity.  In  a  half-dried  condition  a  persimmon  has  the  shriv- 
eled appearance  of  a  raisin,  and  it  tastes  not  unlike  a  date. 


few'-?  •  P*"3nr^cf^§^Sirt*,'"-v'  «•»•■*&)#* 


PERSIMMON    TREE.    BUCKS   CO.,    PA. 
From  a  photograph  by  Mr,  N.  Williams. 


THE   MAGNOLIAS,   ETC. 


35 


sets  every  tooth  "  on  edge "  ;  this  remarkable  as- 
tringency  proceeds  from  the  tannin  it  contains.  The 
wood  of  the  persimmon  is  close-grained,  hard,  and 
blackish  in  color ;  it  is  peculiarly  adapted  to  carv- 
ing. The  kafci,  or  Japanese  persimmon  (JDiospyros 
kaki\  one  of  the  principal  fruit  trees  of  Japan, 
is  now  planted  in  the  Southern  States,  where  it  seems 
perfectly  at  home.  It  has  a  picturesque,  con- 
torted figure,  large,  leathery,  shining  leaves, 
and  luscious  fruit,  which  sometimes 
measures  two  inches  in  diameter. 
Carolina  Red  Bay.    Tne    Carolina    red 

Persea  Carolinensis,    bay,  which     grOWS, 
Pur  sea  Borbonia.  n . 

according  to    cir- 
cumstances, 15   or  even  70  feet 
high,  is  another  Southern  tree. 
It  is  found  in  the  low  grounds 
or  swamps    of    Delaware   and 
the  South.     Its  leaves,  two  to 
five    inches    long,   are    downy 
when    young,    but   soon  grow 
smooth ;    they   are    evergreen. 
The   flowers,  which   appear    in 
summer,  are   inconspicuous,  and 
of  a  greenish-white  color.      The 
berry,  half   an  inch    long,  is  dark  blue  with   a  red 
stem  ;  it  ripens  in  autumn. 


Carolina  Red  Bay, 


CHAPTEE  III. 

I.  Simple  Alternate  Leaves. 

1.  Without  teeth.  B.  Edge  divided. 

THE  TULIP  TREE  AND   SASSAFRAS. 

T  1'    Tree-  ^HE  ^U^P  *ree  *s  a^so  known  as  white- 

Whitewood.      wood,  but  this  name  is  commonly  ap- 

Liriodendron  plied    to    the   lumber.      The   wood, 

i  III t Tit  T€VCL 

however,   is    far  from   white;   it   is 

rather  dull  greenish  yellow,  sparingly  streaked  here 

and  there  with  dark  or  blackish  brown.     This  tree  is 

often  a  remarkable  sight  in  May  or  June,  with  its 

countless    greenish-yellow   "tulips,"   touched    inside 

with   orange,  which   measure   four   or  more   inches 

across.     The  whole  effect  of   color  is  worth  study. 

It  is  as  aesthetic  and  lovely  as  it  is  curious  amid  the 

plainer  green  of  other  trees. 

The  tulip  tree  attains  a  gigantic  size  in  the  South 

and   West ;   it    measures    not  infrequently  140   feet 

in    height   and    eight   feet   in   diameter;    sometimes 

specimens  are  found  which  are  160  to   190  feet  in 

height.     The  trunk  often  carries  an  almost  uniform 

36 


THE  TULIP  TREE  AND  SASSAFRAS. 


37 


<^ 


^y     n  I       '*     ~£ 


m 


' 


,\ 


t 


y  * 


s*-^ 


BfWflt»V  P 


\ 


* 


Tulip  tree. 


38         FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

diameter  for  forty  feet  upward,  and  when  near  the 
summit  divides  itself  into  strong,  regularly  disposed 
branches,  which,  with  the  far-reaching  ones  below, 
give  the  tree  massive  proportions  and  a  truly  mag- 
nificent appearance.  As  compared  with  the  sugar 
maple,  the  foliage  is  not  nearly  so  rich  and  dense, 
but  superiority  of  size  entitles  it  to  the  honor  of 
being  called  a  tree-giant. 

The  leaf  is  so  peculiarly  cut  off  at  the  end  that 
one  recognizes  it  at  once  ;  it  is  unique  in  shape,  very 
smooth,  thin,  and  it  generally  turns  a  russet  color  in 
the  fall.*  The  seed  pod  expands  (notice  my  sketch) 
into  a  charmingly  decorative  figure,  which  greatly 
adds  to  the  beauty  of  the  tree  in  autumn. 

Whitewood  is  extensively  used  for  interior  finish, 
especially  for  paneling  and  moldings ;  it  is  so  free 
from  knots,  and  the  grain  is  so  straight,  that  carpen- 
ters prefer  it  to  the  best  of  white  pine.  It  is  also 
used  in  carriage  building,  as  no  other  wood  is  quite  so 
well  adapted  to  the  curved  paneling  which  this  work 
requires.  The  best  growth  of  the  tulip  tree  is  found 
in  the  lower  Wabash  River  Valley  and  on  the  west- 
ern slopes  of  the  Alleghany  Mountains,  but  much  of 
the  lumber  used  in  the  Northeastern  States  is  brought 
from  Michigan  and  Wisconsin.     The  tree  does  not 

*  Sometimes  it  turns  bright  buff-yellow. 


THE   TULIP   TREE  AND   SASSAFRAS.  39 

grow  thickly  anywhere,  and  it  is  seldom  that  one 
finds  more  than  a  few  good-sized  specimens  on  an 
acre  of  forest  land. 

There  is,  or  used  to  be,  a  large  tulip  tree  growing 
on  the  slope  of  Mount  Mitchell,  in  North  Carolina, 
not  far  from  the  spot  where  Prof.  Mitchell  lost  his 
life.  The  trunk  of  this  tree  in  1806  measured  thirty- 
three  feet  in  circumference  at  three  feet  from  the 
ground.  There  is  a  notable  group  of  six  beautiful 
trees,  each  one  of  which  is  over  50  feet  high,  near 
the  Eastern  Railroad  station  at  East  Saugus,  Mass. 
On  the  eastern  side  of  the  town  of  Englewood,  X.  J., 
there  is  a  small  but  most  symmetrical  specimen,  which 
at  the  period  of  bloom  is  a  domelike  mass  of  soft, 
yellow-green  flowers  and  leaves.  I  have  never  seen  a 
tulip  tree  which  equaled  this  one  in  form  and  color. 

Sassafras  Sassafras  may  be  identified  at  once 

Sasmfra* officinale,    by  its   strongly  aromatic   taste;   not 

Sassafras  sassafras.     ^    ^Q    ^    ^^    ftnd    twj<^    but 

also  the  leaves,  have  a  pungent  flavor,  reminding  one 
of  a  certain  kind  of  old-fashioned  sugar  candy.  A 
decoction  of  the  root  and  bark  also  contributes  largely 
to  the  making  of  root  beer.  The  tree,  according  to 
Gray,  attains  an  altitude  of  125  feet,  and  Prof.  Ap- 
gar  records  its  height  as  100  feet.*     This  is  a  sur- 


*Vide  Trees  of  the  Northern  United  States,  Austin  C.  Apgar; 


40         FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

prise  to  many  of  us,  who  possibly  have  never  seen  a 
specimen  which  exceeded  40  feet.     I  have  freijuent- 


Sassafras. 


ly  found  sassafras  in  the  vicinity  of  Lake  Mahopac, 
Putnam  County,  N.  Y.,  10  or  15  feet  high,  and  oc- 
casionally in  New  Jersey,  perhaps  25  feet  high ;  in 
the  South,  however,  it  commonly  grows  to  a  height 

but  in  Silva  of  North  America  Prof.  Sargent  places  the  maximum 
height  at  90  feet. 


a 


'  I 


*V'# 


1 


\J»       'Z. 


j. ; ' 


/s\ 


SASSAFRAS. 

Windy   Bush,   Bucks  Co.,  Penn. 


THE  TULIP  TREE  AND   SASSAFRAS. 


41 


of  from  50  to  60  feet.  Sassafras  is  found  throughout 
the  North  and  West,  from  eastern  Massachusetts  to 
Iowa,  Kansas,  and  Indian  Territory ;  southward  it  ex- 
tends as  far  as  central  Florida,  and  from  there  to 
Texas. 

The   leaves   have    three   distinct   forms,   each  of 
which  I  have  sketched ;  the  texture  is  smooth,  and 
rather  thick.     Although  all  parts  of  the  tree  are  aro- 
matic,* it  will  he  found  that 
the  bark   of  the  roots  is  bit- 
ingly    strong,   and    from 
this  the  oil  of  sassafras 
is  distilled  ;   it  is  most- 
ly made  in   Pennsylva- 
nia and  Virginia.     The 
bark  of  a  young  tree  is 
a    warm,    buffish    gray 
streaked     with     green ; 
the  twigs  are  shiny  yel- 
lowish green.    The  fruit, 

which  is  ripe  in  September,  is  small,  oval,  one-seeded, 
bluish,  and  has  a  reddish,  rather  fleshy,  club-shaped 
stem.  The  flowers  are  inconspicuous,  greenish  yel- 
low, and  appear  in  early  spring  with  the.  developing 
leaves.      I   have    never   found    the    sassafras    in    the 


Sassafras 


*  The  leaves  furnish  the  flavoring  used  in  gumbo  soup. 


42         FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

White  Mountains  nor  in  any  j>art  of  the  country 
immediately  south  of  them.  There  are  two  beauti- 
ful little  trees,  perhaps  12  feet  high,  in  the  Arnold 
Arboretum,  of  quite  symmetrical  proportions.  On 
the  21st  of  October,  1895,  I  noticed  that  these  trees 
had  scarcely  shed  a  dozen  leaves  apiece ;  but  three 
days  later  (a  heavy  frost  had  intervened)  not  one 
leaf  was  left  on  either  tree.*  In  Milton,  Mass.,  there 
is  a  tree  measuring  over  40  feet  in  height,  and  in 
Manchester,  Mass.,  near  the  center  of  the  town,  is  an- 
other quite  as  high. 

*  The  foliage  of  the  sassafras,  more  than  that  of  any  other 
tree  except  the  horse-chestnut,  is  conventional  to  a  fault.  One  is 
impressed  with  the  similarity  between  the  leafage  in  an  old  print 
of  Bewick's  and  that  of  the  sassafras ;  both  are  regular  and  deco- 
rative. 


CHAPTEE  IV. 

I.  Simple  Alternate  Leaves. 

2.  With  teeth.  A.  Edge  not  divided. 

THE  LINDENS,  ETC. 

American  Linden,     TnE  American  linden,  which  some- 
or  Basswood.  times  grows  under  favorable  circum- 

Tllia  Americana.         ,  -,  ork   ,*      l  i  •    i       •      i  i 

stances  130  ieet  high,  is  nest  known 
by  the  name  of  basswood.  In  the  northern  part  of 
New  Hampshire  it  never  seems  to  attain  any  con- 
siderable size.  Most  of  the  basswood  which  may 
be  found  in  the  White  Mountains  is  half  hidden 
among  the  shrubbery ;  but  if  one  comes  across  a 
handsome,  large,  heart  -  shaped  leaf  with  strongly 
marked  veins  and  sharply  pointed,  irregular  teeth, 
and  with  tiny  tufts  of  rusty  hairs  on  the  back  ex- 
actly at  the  junction  of  the  veins,  he  may  be  pretty 
sure  it  belongs  to  this  tree.  If  the  irregularity 
of  the  toothed  edge  is  examined,  it  will  be  seeD 
that  there  is  often  a  regular  alternation  of  line  and 
coarse  points;  it  would  seem  as  though  Nature  had 

first  edged  the   leaf  with  bold,  sharp  notches,  and 

43 


44 


FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


afterward,  not  content  with  her  handiwork,  had  in- 
terspersed the  notches  with  a  series  of  smaller  and 
more  delicate  ones.  The  leaf  is  also  characteristic- 
ally veined ;  on  either   side   over   the   two -scalloped 


Basswood,  American  Linden. 


THE   LINDENS,    ETC. 


-15 


(heart-shaped)  base  is  a  long  vein,  from  which  extend 
four  or  live  branching  ones  with  a  backward  curve. 
This  peculiar  veining  will  be  more  easily  seen  in  my 
drawing  of  the  European  linden's  leaf. 

So  far  as  the  appearance  of  the  leaves  is  con- 
cerned, there  is  very  little  difference  between  the 
American  species  and  its  foreign  relative;  but  be- 
tween the  trees  the  difference  is  at  once  apparent. 


European  Linden. 


The  European  linden  (TUia  Eurqpoea)  is  smaller,  not 
often  over  35  or  40  feet  high;*  its  twigs  are   nu- 


*  The  tree  in  Europe  shows  a  very  different  record;  for  in- 
stance, the  linden  of  Neustadt,  on  the  Kocher  in  Wurtemberg, 
was  large  enough  in  15o0  to  require  stone  columns  to  support  its 


46         FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR   LEAVES. 

merous  and  slender,  and  its  top  nsuall y  tapers  to  quite 
a  point.  The  American  linden  lias  a  rounder  figure, 
its  small  branches  are  heavier,  its  leaf  is  larger  (four 
to  six  inches  long),  and  it  frequently  attains  a  height 
of  from  60  to  70  feet,  with  no  branches  below  a 
point  some  sixteen  feet  above  the  ground.  But 
these  are  superficial  points  of  distinction  ;  the  botani- 
cal difference  is  found  in  the  flowers.  In  the  Eu- 
ropean variety  there  are  no  petal-like  scales  attached 
to  the  stamens.  Our  basswood  is  distinguished  by  a 
cream-colored,  sweet-scented  flower  which  has  these 
scales. 

Basswood  is  frequently  used  in  cabinet  work,  and 
is  a  great  favorite  for  the  manufacture  of  wooden 
ware,  as  it  is  easily  worked,  and  its  grain  is  firm,  white, 
and  clear  of  knots. 

The  linden  is  common  throughout  the  North,  and 
it  extends  among  the  mountains  as  far  south  as  Ala- 
bama.  It  is  also  found  in  Indian  Territory  and 
eastern  Texas.  It  flowers  in  late  spring,  and  in  Oc- 
tober its  tiny  fruit,  like  elongated  brown  peas,  hangs 
suspended  from  a  fine  stem,  half  of  which  appears  to 
be  merged  in  a  leaflike  brown  wing  called  a  bract. 

enormous  branches.  In  1664  this  tree  had  a  trunk  over  thirty- 
seven  feet  in  circumference,  and  was  computed  to  be  from  eight 
hundred  to  one  thousand  years  old. — Scientific  Papers,  ii,  39, 
Asa  Gray. 


THE   LINDENS,   ETC. 


47 


American  Linden  Seed. 


Closely  related  to  the  tree  just  described  is  a  small- 
leaved  basswood  (TiUa  pubescens)  not  over  forty  fed 

high.  In  tbis  species 
the  leaves  are  usually 
two  or  three  inches 
long;  they  are  thin, 
rather  hairy  be- 
neath, and  the 
fruit  "  bract  " 
is  rounded  at 
the  base,  not  pointed  or  tapering  as  in  Til  la  Amer- 
icana; the  fruit  is  also  rounder  than  that  of  other 
species.  This  tree  is  common  from  New  York  south 
and  southwest. 

There  is  another  native  species  of  basswood,  com- 
mon in  the  mountains  of  Pennsylvania  and  in  the 
South  and  Southwest  as  far  as  Tennessee,  called  white 
basswood  (Tilia  heterophylld).  Its  leaves  are  very 
large,  sometimes  seven  inches  long,  smooth,  oblique, 
deep,    shiny    green 


Seed  of  Tilia  pubeseens. 


above,  and  silvery 
white  and  velvety 
beneath,  with  pur- 
plish veins.  This 
tree  grows  to  a 
height  of  from  50  to  60  feet.  Although  my  draw- 
ings do  not  show  any  especial    lopsidedness   to   the 


48 


FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


linden  leaf,  it  will  be  found  that  in  many  cases  tliis 
irregularity  is  very  pronounced  ;  in  the  last-mentioned 
species  it  is  particularly  so. 

American  Holly.     We  have  our  own  American  holly, 
ilex  opaca.         which  is  indeed  a  line  tree  well  wor- 
thy of  cultivation,  although,  through  the  frequent  ab- 
sence of  the  scarlet  berries,  it  has  not  the  brilliancy 

of    its    English    relative, 
is  not  quite  hardy  a 
little  north  of  42°  lati- 
tude.   This  holly  grows 
from    15    to    50    feet 
high,  has  light  brown- 
gray,    smooth    bark, 
and   white   flowers 
which    appear     in 
May. 

The  evergreen 
leaf  is  rather  thick 
and  flat,  has  a  wavy 
margin  with  scat- 
tered spiny  teeth, 
and  lacks  the  luster  of  that  of  the  English  holly. 
The  tree  will  be  found  in  moist  woodlands  near  the 
coast  from  Quincy,  Mass.,  to  New  Jersey,  and  south- 
ward to  Florida ;  from  southern  Indiana  it  extends 
southward  to   the  Gulf.      The  wood  is  very  white, 


American  Holly. 


THE   LINDENS,   ETC. 


41) 


close-grained,  and   hard.     The  leaves  are  commonly 
used  for  decoration  at  Christmas  time. 

Dahoon  Holly.      Tlie   Gaboon  Lolly  is  a  small   tree 

Ilex  Dahoon.        (frequently  it  appears  in  .shrub  form, 

Ilex  Cassine.  -iax  i  •    i  \       ^  •    ^ 

not  over  10  feet  high)  which  grows 
in  the  pine  barrens  or  swamps  of  Virginia, 
and  from  there  southward ;  rarely  it  at- 
tains a  height  of  30  feet.  The  ever- 
green leaf  is  two  or  three  inches  long, 
with  a  curling  margin  toothed  only 
at  the  end ;  sometimes  it  has  no 
teeth  at  all,  and  what  there  are 
can  not  be  called  spiny.  The 
berries  are  a  varied  red — less 
scarlet,  perhaps,  than  those  of  7. 
opaca.  The  small  branches  and  the  veins  on  the 
under  side  of  the  leaf  are  somewhat  downy.  An- 
other species  of  holly  which  often  reaches  the  pro- 
portions of  a  tree,  particularly  on  tlie 
slopes  of  the  Alleghany  Moun- 
tains, is  called  Ilex  mon- 
ticola ;  but  this  has  light  ** 
green  deciduous  leaves,  and 
their  shape  is  not  hollylike  ; 

they  are   large,   thin,   smooth,  and   sharply   toothed. 
The  large  red  berry  is  borne  on  a  short  stem.     J It  x 

monticola  is  common  in  the  damp  woods  of  the  Ta- 
5 


Dahoon  Holly. 


Ilex  Monticola. 


50 


FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 


Carollniana. 


conic   and   Catskill   Mountains,  and   in  Cattaraugus 

County,  N.  Y. ;  it  also  extends  southward  along  the 

Alleghany  Mountains  to  northern  Alabama. 

The  Carolina  buckthorn,  or   Indian 
Carolina 

Buckthorn.      cherry,  is  a  thornless  shrub  or  small 

Mamnus  tree    which    grows    from   12  to   35 

feet  high.  The  somewhat  elliptical 
leaves  are  from  three  to  five  inches  long, 
wavy,  indistinctly  toothed,  strongly 
veined,  and  nearly  smooth,  if  one  ex- 
cepts the  woolly  stem.  The  glob- 
ular, berrylike  fruit,  at  first 
crimson,  is  finally  black  when  ripe 
in  September.  The  Indian  cherry 
is  found  in  wet  grounds  from  Long 
Island,  N.  Y.,  and  New  Jersey  to 
Kentucky,  eastern  Nebraska,  and  eastern 
Texas  ;  southward  it  extends  to  Florida. 
In  the  Southern  States  it  attains  the 
height  and  proportions  of  a  tree.  The 
common  buckthorn  (Bhamnus  cathartica) 
is  a  native  of  Europe  ;  but  Gray  says  it  has 
run  wild  in  a  few  places  here,  and  in  this 
condition  is  apt  to  form  a  small  tree.  The  leaves 
are  minutely  toothed,  and  sometimes  they  grow  oppo- 
site-, the  branchlets  terminate  in  thorns,  which  fact 
distinguishes  it  at  once  from  its  American  relative. 


Carolina 
Buckthorn 


THE   LINDENS,   ETC. 


51 


Wild  or  Canada     The    wild    plum,    sometimes    called 

Canada  plum,  is  a  rather  thorny  tree 
in  its  wild  state,  from    12  to  30  feet 


Plum. 

Prunu&  Americana. 
Pruuas  itiijra. 


high.     There  are 
improved    varieties 
which  are  also  com- 
mon, and  from  one 
of   these   thornless 
ones  my 
sketch  of 
the  leaves 
is  taken.  The 
white     flow- 
ers  appear   in 
spring,  direct- 
ly hefore  or  with   the 
leaves,    and    the   fruit, 
ripe  in  August  or  ear- 
ly   September,  is  oval, 
about   one  inch  in   di- 
ameter ;    its     color    is 
dull    orange,    or    even 
orange  -  red,*      almost 
free    from   bloom  ;    it 


Canada  Plum. 


*  The  fruit  from  which  my  drawing  was  taken  (from  a  tree  in 
cultivation),  when  fully  ripe,  has  a  peculiarly  luniinnus,  aesthetic, 
translucent  red  color,  which  I  greatly  admire. 


52 


FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR   LEAVES. 


Chickasaw  Plum. 

Prunus  Chicasa. 
Prunus 

angustifolia. 


has  a  pleasant  taste,  although  the  skin  is  very  tough 
and  acid.  The  leaves  are  large,  double-toothed, 
coarsely  veined,  and  smooth  without  a  gloss.  The 
tree  is  common  in  woodlands  and  on  river  banks 
from  west  New  England  to  Minnesota.* 

The  Chickasaw  plum 
has  a  long,  lance- 
shaped,  but  broad 
leaf,  with  very  fine 
teeth,  a  shining  green  surface,  and  a 
red  stem.  The  fruit  is  one  half  to  two 
thirds  of  an  inch  in  diameter,  globular, 
thin-skinned,  of  a  lustrous  reddish  color, 
with  a  slight  bloom,  and  is  pleasantly  fla- 
vored ;  it  usually  ripens  in  early  summer. 
The  tree  is  small,  its  average  height  be- 
ing between  15  and  20  feet;  rarely  it 
attains  25  feet.  It  grows  wild  in  Dela- 
ware, and  extends  westward  and  southward  to  Kan- 
sas, Texas,  and  Florida.     It  is  widely  cultivated. 

«r-,,  ■«     «v  The  leaf  of  the  wild  red  cherry,  gen- 

Wild  Eed  Cherry,  .     . 

or  Bird  Cherry,     erally  called  bird  cherry,  is  similar  in 
Prunus  shape  to  that  of  the  Chickasaw  plum, 

Pennsylvanica.      ,..,,...  -..      .,      •  .    • 

but  its  distinct  peculiarity  is  a  certain 
graceful,  wavy  outline,  and   a   shining   light   green, 

*  The  range  of  the  Canada  plum  has  been  greatly  extended 
through  cultivation. 


Chickasaw 
Plum. 


THE  LINDENS,   ETC. 


53 


smooth  surface;  the  margin  is  also  finely  and  sharply 
toothed  ;    sometimes  it  hangs  from   the 


branchlets  much  in  the  fashion  of  a  peach  loaf.     The 
flowers  appear  in  early  May.      The  tiny  cherry,  not 


54 


FAMILIAR  TREES   AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


larger  than  a  pea,  is  translucent  red,  and  sour,  but  the 
birds  seem  to  relish  it. 

This  tree  is  common  in  rocky  woods,  where  it 
often  reaches  the  height  of  from  20  to  40  feet ; 
but  generally  it  will  be  found  beside  the  high- 
way often  not  much  taller  than  the  shrubbery  among 
which  it  grows.  Its  twigs  are  red,  and  the  bark  of 
the  trunk  is  dark  chestnut-red,  very  smooth,  rather 
shiny,  and  is  covered  more  or  less  with  rust-colored 
marks.  Its  tiny,  white,  long-stemmed  flowers  appear 
in  May,  scattered  loosely  over  the  branches,  and  con- 
tribute quite  a  graceful  appearance  to  the  otherwise 
slim  and  scrawny  tree.  The  wild  red  cherry  is  com- 
mon everywhere  in  the 
North,  and  extends 
southward  along 
the  mountains  to 
North  Carolina,  and 
westward  to  Iowa. 

Wild  Black  Cherry.  One     of 
Prunus  serotina.       qitt>  niOSt 

picturesque    trees,    which     in 
perfect  figure   is  more  likely 

Fruit  of  Black  Cherry.  f  ^^  Qn  ^  confines  Qf   gome 

field  or  on  the  bank  of  a  river,  is  the  wild  black 
cherry.  Here  it  is  not  hampered  by  the  crowding 
growth  of  the  forest,  and  it  spreads  itself  over  the 


rX^\ 


TIIE  LINDENS,   ETC.  55 

i 

wide  expanse  of   blue   sky  in  bold  and  charmingly 
rugged  outlines. 

The  tree  is  not  symmetrical,  and  its  foliage  is  not 
luxurious — on  the  contrary,  it  is  rather  thin  ;  but  in 
spite  of  this,  the  wild  black  cherry  with  its  unconven- 
tional branches  and  its  shining  green  leaves  is  a  beau- 
tiful tree  such  as  an  artist  likes  to  draw.  Where 
other  trees  spread  plumelike  against  the  sky,  a  solid 
mass  of  green,  the  black  cherry's  topmost  branches 
are  penciled  in  dainty  silhouette.  This  is  one  of  the 
means  by  which  I  can  identify  the  tree  at  a  great  dis- 
tance.    It  is  always  in  contrast  with  its  surroundings. 

We  are  so  often  attracted  by  contrast  in  natural 
landscape,  that  I  am  constrained  to  call  attention  to  it 
as  an  indispensable  accessory  of  beauty;  in  a  word, 
without  the  thin  foliage  and  unobstructed  boughs  of 
some  of  our  less  luxuriant  trees,  a  landscape,  espe- 
cially if  wooded,  is  heavy  and  monotonous.  But  we 
might  look  far  before  we  would  find  the  wild  black 
cherry  listed  as  a  beautiful  tree  in  the  nurserymen's 
catalogues.  Why  ?  Well,  I  may  explain  at  once 
that  there  are  those  whose  sense  of  the  beautiful  is 
narrowed  down  to  the  confines  of  a  single  fact ;  for 
instance,  a  regularly  proportioned  tree  with  an  or- 
derly habit  is  considered  beautiful  ;  that  is  as  fur  as 
some  people  allow  imagination  to  go.  That  rugged- 
ness,  picturesqueness,  contrastiveness,  and  boldness  are 


56 


FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


also  elements  of  beauty,  never  occurs  to  the  many 
who  see  the  beauty  of  an  American  elm  (who  could 

not  ?),  but  who  can  not  see  the 
beauty  of  a  wild 
black  cherry. 

But  the  tree  is 
not  only  attractive 
in  figure  ;    both  its 
leaf   and   fruit   de- 
serve a  share  of  our 
attention.       Notice 
in    my    sketch    the 
vigorous      way    the 
leaves  seem    to   have 
grown    on  the  branch 
of   the   younger   tree ; 
there  is  a  bluntness  to 
their    figure     notwith- 
standing   the   sharp   tip, 
and    there   is    a    certain 
firmness    of    purpose    in 
the  way  each  one  spreads 
itself  out  from  the   side 
of  the  branchlet  to  catch 
Black  cherry  (young).  the    sun    and   rain  ;    the 

very  teeth  are  finely  and 
firmly  cut,  and  they  are  set  close,  as  if  to  make  a 


TflE   LINDENS,   ETC. 


57 


bold  stand  against  the  elements.  These  leaves  are 
in  sharp  contrast  with  those  of  the  older  cherry, 
and  their  whole  aspect  is  indicative  of  youthful  vigor. 
It  is  a  curious  fact,  however,  that  the  broad,  blunt 
leaf  (which  is  an  exception  to  the  general  rule) 
of  this  younger  black  cherry  is  almost  identi- 
cal in  shape  with  that  of  the  choke  chern 
Prunus  Virginiana  /  this  species  is 
properly  considered  a  shrub,  although 
in  a  mild  climate  it  sometimes  attains 
the  proportions  of  a  good-sized  tree. 
But  this  particular  tree  I  describe 
which,  with  several  others  like  it, 
grows  in  the  valley  of  the  Pemige- 
wasset  River,  N.  H.,  is  unquestion- 
ably Prunus  serotina,  as  a  taste  of 
the  bitter  almond  -  flavored  bark 
proves  its  identity  beyond  a  doubt.* 
The  long  type  of  leaf,  such  as  I  have  drawn  just 
above,  is  most  common  in  the  wild  black  cherry. 
The  flowers,  unlike  those  of  the  red  cherry,  grow 
in  clusters  around  a  long,  upright  or  pendulous 
stem,   and   appear   in   May  or  June.      The   fruit   is 


Typical  leaf  of  the 
Black  Cherry. 


*  T  do  not  hesitate  to  introduce  to  the  reader  any  leaf  which 
I  may  come  across,  whether  it  be  typical  or  not.  One  of  the 
most  interesting  phases  of  the  study  of  Nature  is  her  essential 
u  neon  ven  tionality. 


58         FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 

larger  than  a  good-sized  pea,  and  frequently  has  (if 
I  may  be  allowed  the  expression)  a  "  broad-shoul- 
dered "  look ;  the  skin  is  pur  pie  -black,  and  the  pulp 
within  is  sweet,  with  a  bitter,  aromatic  taste,  ac- 
counted for  by  the  presence  of  hydrocyanic  acid  *  in 
the  tree.  One  may  notice  the  same  taste  in  bitter 
almonds  and  peach  stones.  The  bark  is  also  bitter 
and  aromatic,  and  is  largely  used  as  a  tonic.  "  Cherry 
brandy ,:  is  made  from  the  fruit.  The  tree  grows 
from  50  to  100  feet  high;  its  bark  is  a  reddish 
brown,  f  marked  with  horizontal  lines  and  rough  ex- 
crescences. On  old  trees  the  bark  is  blackish  brown, 
and  on  very  young  ones  it  is  purplish  or  even  green- 
ish brown.  The  fruit  is  ripe  in  September  (in  New 
Hampshire),  and  the  birds  congregate  on  the  boughs 
in  great  numbers  to  enjoy  the  boundless  feast. 

The  wood  of  this  cherry  tree  is  very  valuable  in 
cabinet  work ;  it  is  of  a  brownish  pink  tint,  which  is 
easily  stained  to  the  depth  of  color  common  in  new 
mahogany  (not  Santo  Domingo  mahogany),  and  it  is 
frequently  used  to  imitate  that  wood.  The  wild 
black  cherry  is  distributed  from  Maine  southward  to 
Florida,  and  westward  to  Minnesota,  eastern  Ne- 
braska, and  eastern  Texas. 

*  More  commonly  called  prussic  acid. 

f  But  southward,  in  Florida  or  the  Gulf  States,  the  color  is 
light  gray,  vide  $ilva  of  North  America.— C,  S,  Sargent, 


TIIE  LINDENS,  ETC.  59 

American  Crab      The  American  crab  apple  is  a  tree 
Apple.  which    I    think    is   not   fully   appre- 

ryrus  coronaria.       ciated_!  mQaUj  Rg  ft  beautiful    tree    it 

is  not  planted  enough  in  our  parks  and  private 
grounds,  and  as  a  fruit  tree  it  is  too  often  displaced 
by  some  large-fruited  apple.  In  one  respect  it  ought 
not  to  be  considered  with  the  common  apple  at  all. 
Its  fruit  makes  a  delicious  preserve  or  jelly  not  to  be 
mentioned  in  the  same  breath  with  plebeian  "  apple- 
sauce," as  it  possesses  a  pronounced  and  delicate  flavor 
of  its  own. 

The  beautiful  yellow-and-red  fruit*  in  a  good 
season  burdens  the  crab  apple  beyond  the  strength  of 
its  supple  boughs,  and  these  must  be  braced  up  with 
stanch  poles  if  the  owner  would  not  see  his  tree 
rent  in  sunder  and  its  branches  lying  a  mass  of  ruin 
on  the  lawn.  I  call  to  mind  a  beautiful  tree  with 
long,  graceful  branches  extending  clear  to  the  ground, 
which  in  May  is  a  magnificent,  gigantic  bouquet  of 
large,  fragrant  pink  blossoms,  whose  delicious  per- 
fume sometimes  ladens  the  air  fully  three  hundred 
feet  away.  "What  a  sight  for  a  Japanese  artist,  and 
what   a   treat   for   a   Parisian  perfumer !     But  they 

*  In  the  wild  state  the  crab-apple  fruit  is  greenish  yellow. 
Some  trees  I  know  of  in  cultivation  bear  fruit  more  or  less  cov- 
ered with  a  bloom,  so  the  yellow-and-red  color  beneath  is  not 
brilliant  until  the  plum-colored  surface  is  rubbed  off, 


60 


FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


would  not  be  alone  in  the  appreciation  of  this  crab 
apple.  One  morning  I  approached  and  stood  beside 
it,  drawn  by  an  unaccountable  musical  hum  which  I 
had  heard  no  less  than  seventy  feet  away.  Wonder 
of  wonders !  I  saw  ten  thousand  golden  bees  busily 
engaged  gathering  honey  from  the  countless  blossoms, 
and  yet  another  ten  thousand  bewilderingly  circling 
over  those  at  work,  till  the  music  of 

their  hum  was  like 
the  sub- 
dued   di- 


apason 
notes   of 


\fft 

Crab  Apple. 

a  grand  organ.  The  bees  at  least  do  not  overesti- 
mate the  value  of  this  tree.  The  crab  apple's  leaves 
are  larger  than  those  of  most  apple  trees,  and  are 
not  infrequently  heart-shaped  at  the  base.  My 
drawing  was  taken  from   a   tree  in  cultivation,  but 


THE    LINDENS,    ETC. 


61 


the  leaves  in  no  wise  differ  from  a  type  common  to 
the  wild  tree,  although  the  latter  often  shows  :i  leaf 
with  three  notches  on  either  side.*  The  fruit  is 
about  an  inch  and  a  quarter  in  diameter;  the  pulp  is 
yellow,  hard,  and  fit  only  for  preserving.  The  tree 
grows  from  15  to  30  feet  high,  and  in  its  wild  state 
extends  from  western  New  York  westward  to  south- 
ern Minnesota,  Kansas,  and  Texas, 
and  along  the  mountains  southward 
to  Alabama. 


Shadbush,  or 
Juneberry. 

AmelancMer 
Canadensis. 


The  beautiful  shad- 
bush,     which     most 


Crab  Apples. 


often    is    found    in 

shrub  form,  frequent- 
ly attains  the  proportions  of  a  hand- 
some tree  30  feet  high.  It  is  some- 
times called  Juneberry  or  service  berry.  The  white 
flowers,  with  petals  twice  as  long  at  least  as  they 
are  wide,  appear  in  advance  of  the  leaves,  and  hang 
in  loose,  graceful  clusters.  The  fruit  looks  some- 
thing like  a  large  huckleberry,  with  the  same  star- 
like indentation  at  the  top,  and  a  similar  black-pur- 
ple color. 

The  beauty  of  the  berry  lies  in  its  diverse  color- 
ing.    Sometimes  we  may  find  on  one  tree  dull  pink, 


*  For  a  somewhat  similar  leaf,  see  my  drawing  of  the  scarlet- 
fruited  thorn. 


62 


FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


crimson,  magenta,  and  plum-purple  as  well  as  black- 
purple  berries,  which  are  in  various  stages  of  ripe- 
ness ;  but  I  may  add  that  their  appearance  is  as  a 
promise  unfulfilled,  for, 
ripe  or  unripe,  they  are  all 
equally  satisfactory  —  or 
rather  unsatisfactory;  they 
are  quite 
tasteless. 
The  leaf 


Shadbush  or  Juneberry 


is  interesting  if   not   exceedingly  beautiful ;    it   fre- 
quently varies  from  the  pointed  oval  figure,  which 


THE  LINDENS,  ETC.  63 

was  characteristic  of  the  specimen  which  I  have 
drawn,  to  an  ohlongish  or  square-shouldered  shape. 
Its  texture  is  hard  and  smooth,  reminding  one  of 
leather ;  the  teeth  are  extremely  regular,  sharp,  line, 
and  the  veins  are  delicate  and  regularly  arranged ; 
there  are  few  leaves,  in  fact,  that  can  compare  with 
the  perfection  of  form  and  structure  which  is  ap- 
parent at  a  glance  in  the  shadbush  leaf.  Did  I  say 
perfection  ?  That  was  hardly  the  right  word ;  no 
leaf  is  really  perfect.  To  demonstrate  this  fact  to 
our  own  satisfaction,  we  may  begin  what  will  prove 
a  fruitless  search  for  a  specimen  whose  outline  we 
may  trace  with  a  pencil,  and  then,  reversing  the  leaf, 
find  the  drawing  still  in  conformity  with  it.  No, 
Nature  does  not  trouble  herself  about  that  kind  of 
perfection  which  may  be  measured  with  a  foot  rule. 

The  fruit  of  the  shadbush  is  ripe  in  June  and 
July ;  its  flower  is  in  bloom  about  the  time  the  shad 
"  run."  The  bark  of  the  tree  is  smooth,  and  laven- 
der-brown ;  less  ruddy  than  that  of  black  birch.  I 
call  to  mind  a  certain  tree  at  least  20  feet  high 
growing  wild  on  a  river  intervale  among  the  AVhite 
Mountains,  which  would  be  an  ornament  of  striking 
beauty  at  its  time  of  bloom  in  park  or  garden  ;  but  it 
remains  a  wTild  tree,  which,  like  Thomas  Gray's  wild 
flower,  was  "  born  to  blush  unseen." 

It  would  be  well  worth  our  while  to  search  for 


64         FAMILIAR   TREES  AND   THEIR   LEAVES. 

the  shadbush  in  springtime  and  learn  to  love  its 
beauty  for  its  own  sake  ;  it  is  common  in  all  the 
seaboard  States,  and  extends  westward  to  Minne- 
sota and  eastern  Nebraska,  and  soutbwestward  to 
Louisiana. 


CHAPTER  Y. 

I.  Simple  Alternate  Leaves. 

2.  With  teeth.  A.  Edge  not  divided. 

THE  WITCH-HAZEL,  SORREL  TREE,  ELMS, 

ETC. 

Witch-Hazel.       The  weird -looking  witch-hazel,  whose 
Hamamelis  twigs  are  decorated  in  autumn  with 

tiny  tangled  yellow  blossoms,  is  a 
shrub  rather  than  a  tree,  reaching  a  height,  how- 
ever, of  fully  30  feet  if  it  happens  to  grow  under 
advantageous  circumstances.  In  the  woods  of  the 
White  Mountains  it  rarely  grows  more  than  12 
feet  high,  but  in  the  township  of  Campton  I  know  of 
three  handsome  trees  over  16  feet  in  height,  each 
of  which  possesses  only  two  or  three  stems ;  their 
appearance,  in  fact,  is  quite  treelike. 

The  leaf  of  the  witch-hazel,  on  an  average  two 
and  a  half  inches  long  and  nearly  as  broad,  is  rather 
roughly  modeled ;  one  side  is  larger  than  the  other, 

their  irregular  teeth  are  coarse  and  wavy  pointed,  the 
6  G5 


CO         FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR   LEAVES. 


Witch-Hazel. 


THE   WITCH-HAZEL,   SORREL  TREE,    ETC.        07 

veins  are  straight  and  depressed,  so  thai  the  leaf  ap- 
pears somewhat  corrugated,  and  the  surface  is  more  or 
less  covered  (when  young)  with  down.  The  flowers 
appear  just  as  the  leaves  are  turning  from  a  dark  green 
to  a  golden  yellow  spotted  with  In-own  and  olive.  1  £ 
a  single  blossom  is  disentangled  from  the  tousled  but 
pretty  little  cluster  of  yellow  flowers  on  the  brown 
twigs,  the  figure  with  a  little  straightening  out  will 
look  like  my  sketch  at  A.  On  these  twigs  also  appear 
the  twin  seed-pods  left  from  last  year's  flowers  ;  these 
have  a  fashion  of  suddenly  bursting  when  the  seeds 
(polished  little  flattened  brown  pellets)  are  ripe,  and 
ejecting  their  contents  many  yards  away.*  Thirty 
feet  is  no  exaggerated  estimate  of  the  distance,  al- 
though in  my  own  experience  I  do  not  remember 
having  seen  a  seed  fly  more  than  twelve  feet.  But 
Mr.  William  Hamilton  Gibson  has  put  the  matter  to 
a  thorough  test,  so  I  cpiote  what  he  says  :  "  My  experi- 
ments with  the  pods  upon  a  long  piazza  and  else- 
where proved  that  the  momentum  of  the  seed  Avould 
commonly  carry  it  to  a  distance  of  twenty  feet,  often 
over  thirty  feet,  and  in  one  or  two  instances  the 
diminutive   double-barreled   howitzers   succeeded    in 


*"The  seed  is  discharged  by  a  contraction  of  the  edges  of 
the  valves  of  bony  endocarp "  (inner  lining  of  the  seed-pod), 
"which  in  opening  suddenly  frees  it  by  pressure  and  causes  it  to 
fly  upward." — Silva  of  North  America,  C.  S.  Sargent. 


68 


FAMILIAR   TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


propelling  tlieir  missiles  to  the  distance  of  forty-five 
feet  by  actual  measurement." 

The  witch  hazel  is  distributed  from  New  England 
southward  to  Florida  and  Louisiana,  and  westward  to 
eastern  Minnesota.* 

Sorrel  Tree.        The  sorrel  tree  is  found  from  Penn- 
Oxydendrum  sylvania  to  Indiana  and  central  Ten- 

nessee,  and   southward    to    Florida, 
mostly  along  the  Alleghany  Mountains,  and 
to  Louisiana.     It  grows  from  20  to  GO 
feet  high,  and  may 


Sorrel  Tree,  seed  vessels,  and  flower  at  A. 

easily  be  identified  by  its  sour-tasting  leaf,  which  in 

*  From  the  witch  hazel  an  extract  is  manufactured  possessing 
peculiar  healing  powers;  it  is  generally  known  as  "Pond's  Ex- 
tract."    The  discovery  of  the  medicinal  quality  of  the  witch  hazel 


THE  WITCH    HAZEL,  SORREL  TREE,    ETC.       f,0 

outline  resembles  tliat  of  a  peach  tree.  Its  white 
flowers  appear  in  June  or  July;  they  arc  small,  urn- 
shaped,*  and  are  borne  in  loose,  long,  one-sided  clus- 
ters. The  leaves  (five  to  seven  inches  long)  are  finely 
toothed,  shining,  smooth,  and  have  very  slender  stems ; 
they  turn  to  a  variety  of  brilliant  reds  in  the  fall.  The 
sorrel  tree  is  not  a  very  distant  relative  of  the  kalmia 
and  rhododendron ;  they  all  belong  to  the  Heath  family. 
Slippery,  or  Red  Elm.  The  leaf  of  the  slippery  elm  is 
himusjuiva.  about  as  coarse  and  rough  as  it 
could  possibly  be.  This  character  does  not  show 
itself  as  distinctly  in  my  drawing  as  I  could  wish, 
but  the  roughness  is  felt  rather  than  seen;  indeed, 
I  think  I  could  identify  a  branch  of  the  tree  quite 
easily  with  my  eyes  shut.  Even  the  branchlets 
are  rough,  and  in  spring  the  soft  and  downy  buds 
under  a  magnifying  glass  appear  covered  with  in- 
numerable rust-colored  hairs.  The  upper  side  of  the 
leaf  under  the  glass  also  appears  hairy,  and  the  under 
side  is  a  mass  of  soft  down  ;  the  teeth  are  very  coarse, 
and  double,  and  the  ribs  beneath  are  prominent,  stilf, 
and  hairy  at  the  angles.  The  leaf  is  much  larger 
than  that  of  the  common  elm ;  it  measures  from  five 
to  seven  inches  in  length. 

is  attributed  to  an  Oneida  Indian. —  Vide  Shrubs  of  Northeastern 

America,  Charles  S.  Newhall. 

*  They  somewhat  resemble  the  wintergreen  blossom. 


70         FAMILIAR  TREES   AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


Slippery  Elm. 


The   tree   grows   from  30  to   60  feet  high,  and 
has   an    inner   mucilaginous    bark   (whence    it    gets 


THE   WITCH   HAZEL,   SORREL   TREE,   ETC.       VI 

the  name  "  slippery  elm "),  which  is  possessed  of 
demulcent  and  medicinal  qualities.  One  may  easily 
identify  the  tree  by  the  gummy,  aromatic  taste  of 
the  bark  on  the  branchlets.  The  wood  is  reddish, 
tough,  and  very  durable;  it  is  used  by  the  farmers 
for  fence  posts,  as  it  lasts  a  long  time  half  burie  1 
in  the  ground.  It  is  common  from  New  England 
to  the  Dakotas  and  eastern  Nebraska,  and  south- 
ward to  Florida  and  Texas,  but  in  the  country  im 
mediately  south  of  the  White  Mountains  I  notice 
that  it  rarely  develops  beyond  the  proportions  of 
a  small  tree,  with  a  trunk  of  about  eight  inches  diam- 
eter. 

The  Scotch  elm(  TJlmus montana),  sometimes  called 
Wych  elm,  has  similar  but  smaller  and  less  rough 
leaves  than  the  slippery  elm  ;  the  buds  are  not  downy, 
and  the  branches  droop  at  their  extremities.  This 
tree  is  extensively  cultivated,  and  will  be  found  in 
many  of  our  parks. 

American,  or  The  American  elm  is  justly  famous 

White  Elm.  as  one  0f  the  most  beautiful  of   all 

Ulmus  Americana.  t,     c  j.i  r  n,-\ 

trees.  It  frequently  grows  from  <»<• 
to  80,  and  occasionally  120  feet  high.  One  of  our 
cities  (New  Haven),  by  reason  of  its  beautiful  elms, 
has  been  called  the  "Elm  City,"  and  many  New 
England  towns  and  villages — Greenfield,  Deerheld, 
Andover.  Concord,  and  a  host   of   others — boast  of 


72         FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR   LEAVES. 

their  elm-embowered  streets,  which  are  indeed  beau- 
tiful, and  typical  of  a  New  England  town. 

The  most  characteristic  mark  of  beauty  in  the  elm 
is  the  fringed  appearance  of  its  drooping  branchlets, 
which  hang  suspended  from  the  heavy  boughs  and 
trunk  like  so  much  lacework.  The  poet  "Whittier 
noticed  this  beauty,  and  alluded  to  it  in  his  verses 
addressed  to  the  Merrimac  Hiver : 

Laugh  in  thy  plunges  from  fall  to  fall ; 
Play  with  thy  fringes  of  elms,  and  darken 
Under  the  shade  of  the  mountain  wall. 

The  arching  character  of  the  boughs  which  leave 
the  trunk  with  an  almost  imperceptible  curve  out- 
ward, distinguishes  this  elm  from  all  others,  and  gives 
it  that  singularly  graceful  figure  which  is  best  seen  in 
isolation  on  the  meadow,  or  in  succession  beside  the 
road. 

The  leaf  of  the  elm  is  rather  harsh  to  the  touch, 
and  distinguished  by  its  veiny,  lopsided  character, 
entirely  different  hi  every  respect  from  a  beech  leaf ;  * 
the  edge  is  most  frequently,  but  not  invariably,  dou- 
ble-toothed. 

The  meadow  land  of  the  Connecticut  River  Yal- 

*  I  make  a  comparison  of  these  two  opposite  types  of  leaves 
to  draw  particular  attention  to  the  difference  in  the  character  of 
foliage  between  the  beech  and  the  elm ;  no  two  trees  could  pos- 
sibly be  more  differently  graceful. 


TnE   WITCH    HAZEL,  SORREL   TREE,    ETC.       73 

ley  is  famous  for  its  grand  elms  ;  so  is  that  adjoining 
Plymouth,  X.  II.,  and   in  this   beautiful    mountain 

hamlet   is   a   magnificent   specimen, 
near   the    Pemigewasset   House, 


American  "White  Elm. 

whose  trunk  four  persons  can  scarcely  encircle  with 
outstretched  arms  and  clasped  hands.  There  are 
several  "  Washington "  elms  in  various  parts  of  the 
land,  the  most  notable  one  of  which  is  that  at  Cam- 
bridge, Mass.*     The  old  elm  which  formerly  stood  on 

*  Under  this  tree,  which  to-day  has  a  rather  dilapidated  ap- 
pearance, Washington  took  command  of  the  American  army, 
July  3,  1775. 


74 


FAMILIAR   TREES   AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


Boston  Common  was  cut  down  several  years  ago  on 
account  of  its  decayed  condition.  The  wood  of  the 
elm  is  white,  exceedingly  tough  and  durable,  and 
is  used  to  make  wheel-hubs,  yokes,  and  saddle-trees ; 
it  is  even  beautiful  when  used  in  cabinet  work,  and 
has  a  rich,  light  yellow-brown  color  far  superior 
to  that  of  the  birch.  The  tree  is  common 
in  all  parts  of  the  country.  The  English 
elm  (  Ulmus  carrvpestirii)  has  a  leaf  which 
is  smaller  and  darker  than 
that  of  our  own  elm,  and  it 
is  not  infrequently  rough ; 
g^jf  its  shape  is  also  more  ab- 
ruptly sharp -pointed.  The 
limbs  of  the  English  elm 
grow  out  from  the  trunk  at  a 
wide  angle,  and  they  are  apt  to  give  the 
tree  an  irregular  outline  with  a  larger 
upper  and  a  smaller  lower  mass  of 
foliage.  There  are  numbers  of  fine 
old  English  elms  on  the  Common 
in  Boston ;  but  few  of  them 
reach  a  height  of  over  50  feet. 
Corky  White  Elm.    The  corky  white 

Ulmus  racemosa.         e]m    (gQ   to    10Q 

feet   high)  resembles  the  white  elm,  with  this   very 
pronounced    difference  :    its    branches    are    marked 


Corky  White  Elm. 


THE  WITCH  BAZEL,  SORREL  TREE,  ETC.   ;;, 


with  large,  corky  ridges,  and  the  twigs  are  some- 
what downy.  The  leaves  also  have  simpler  and 
straighter  veins.  The  tree  is 
generally  found  on  river 
banks,  and  is  distributed 
through  northwestern  Kew 
Hampshire,  southern  Ver- 
mont, and  northern  New 
York  to  southeastern 
Missouri,  and  the 
southwest  as  far 
as  central  Ten- 
nessee. Anoth- 
er      elm      Closely  Wahoo  or  Winged  Elm. 

resembling  the  last 

is  a  small  tree  (40  to  50  feet  high)  called  Wahoo, 
or  winged  elm  ( Ulmiis  (data).  This  variety  is  dis- 
tinguished by  corky  ridges  on  either  side  of  the 
branchlets,  which  are  smooth,  not  downy.  The  leaf 
is  very  small  (perhaps  not  over  two  inches  long), 
downy  beneath,  thickish,  and  almost  stemless.  This 
species  extends  from  southern  Virginia  southward 
to  western  Florida,  and  southwestward  to  Indian 
Territory  and  Texas. 

Planer  Tree  or        The  water  elm,  or  Planer  tree,  named 
Water  Elm.   for  J#  J.  Planer,  a  German  botanist, 

Planera  aquatica.      m^  ^  be  confllsed  wit]l  fcne  greater 


76         FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


plane  tree,  frequently  called  buttonwood.     This  small 
tree,  confined  to  wet  banks  beside  ponds  and  rivers, 

is  found  in  the  valley  of  the 
Cape    Fear    Kiver,   N.    C, 
in    Kentucky,   and    in    the 
South ;    westward  it   extends 
to  southern  Missouri.     It  rare- 
ly grows   over  30  or  40   feet 
high,    and    has   a   small,    dark- 
green   leaf   resembling    that   of 
the  white  elm,  smooth  above,  and 
of  a  pale  grayish-green  color  be- 
neath;   the     teeth    are    sometimes 
double.     The  fruit  is  a  rough,  leath- 
ery-skinned nut  about  a  quarter  of  an 
inch   in   diameter,  altogether   different 
Planer  Tree.      from  the   elm's  fruit,  which  is  always 
winged ;  it  is  ripe  in  September.     The  bark  of  the 
tree  is  apt  to  scale  off  like  that  of  the  buttonwood. 
Hackbeny,  or  The  hackberry,  or  sugarberry,  usually 

Sugarberry.  js  a  small  tree  with  the  general  ap- 

Celtis  occidentalis.  p  i  -r,     r  x      *i. 

pearance  oi  an  elm.  It  bears  irmt 
about  as  large  as  bird -cherries,  sweet  to  the  taste,  first 
yellowish   and   finally  purplish   red   in   color.*      Its 


*  In  midwinter  the  berries  are  dark  mahogany-red.     A  hand- 
some but  small  hackberry  growing  on   a   street  in  Cambridge, 


THE  WITCH   HAZEL,   SORREL  TREE,   ETC.      77 

deep-green  leaves  are  variable  in  figure  and  texture ; 
some  of  them  are  sparingly  toothed,  others  are  ex- 
tremely oblique  or  lopsided,  and  a  few- 
are  heart-shaped  (scalloped)  at  the 
base ;  tliey  are  all  conspicuously 
taper  -  pointed,  and  the  teeth, 
extending  over  two  thirds  of 
the  edge  from  the  tip  down, 
are  sharp.  The  leaves  are  rare- 
ly over  three  inches  long,  and 
are  generally  rough  to  the 
touch. 

This  tree  is  widely  dis- 
tributed ;  it  is  common  from 
New  England  southward,  and 
westward  to  Minnesota  and  even 
to  Washington,  on  river  banks  and  in  the  woods; 
it  rarely  reaches  a  height  of  over  20  feet,  but  in 
the  South,  and  especially  in  the  lower  Ohio  basin, 
it  attains  the  proportions  of  a  large  tree,  sometimes 
130  feet  high. 
Red  Mulberry.      The    red    mulberry   grows    variously 

Alarm  rubra.  from    }5    to    70    feet    high,    and    bears 

dark   red,    or,  when  finally   ripe,   black-purple    ber- 


Hackberry. 


Mass.,  not  far  from  the  Harvard  Botanical  Gardens,  is  crowded 
with  thousands  of  berries  as  late  as  the  end  of  January. 


78         FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


Red  Mulberry 


ries,    resembling     in 
shape  and   size    long 
wild       blackberries. 
The    leaves,  as  one 
may    see   from  my 
drawings,     are     ex- 
tremely  variable   in 
figure  ;    perhaps    it 
may    occasion     some 
surprise   when    I    say 
that  these  leaves  which 
I  have  drawn  all  came 
off  the  same  tree.     This 
particular  tree  grows  in 
the  Pemigewasset  Val- 
ley (White  Mountains), 
just    in    front    of     an 
ideal    farmhouse,    and 
is    not    over     15    feet 
high ;  but  it  is  extraor- 
dinarily beautiful    both 
in   roundness   of    figure 
and   in   brilliancy  of   fo- 
liage. 

Nothing  is  more 
charming  in  color  than 
the   leaves   of    a    young 


THE    WITCH    HAZEL,   SORREL   TREK,    ETC.        79 

mulberry  tree  in  early  summer ;  they  are  usually  of 
a  soft,  warm,  yellow-green  hue,  in  agreeable  con- 
trast with  the  surrounding  darker-leaved  trees,  and 
they  seem  to  hold  the  afterglow  in  some  mysteri- 
jv  ous   manner   peculiar   to   themselves.       This 

IkiVv         rarG   aild    SlowiQg   yellow-green   color   is 
identical    with  that   which  we  have  ad- 
mired perhaps  in  the  garments  of  the 
Madonna  in  a  picture  called 
The  Virgin  Enthroned,  by 
the  American  artist,  Abbott 
H.  Thayer.     The  red  mul- 
berry  is   common    east    of 
the    Mississippi    River,   and 
Cut-ieaf  of  Red  Mulberry,     in     that     locality    reaches     a 

height  of  TO  feet  or  more.     It 
extends  throughout  the  country. 

There  is  also  a  white  mulberry  (Mbrus  alba)  with 
leaves  similar  to  those  of  the  red  mulberry,  except  that 
they  are  smooth  and  shiny.  This  tree  was  intro- 
duced from  China  about  1830,  and  cultivated  for  the 
sake  of  its  leaves,  upon  which  silkworms  delight  to 
feed.  The  oval  fruit  is  whitish,  and  at  times  pur- 
plish ;  it  is  edible,  but  has  a  rather  sickening  sweet 
taste.  The  tree  is  common  throughout  the  North  ; 
southward  it  extends  to  Florida  and  Texas.  I  recol- 
lect a  tall  and  handsome  specimen  at  Palenville,  X.  Y., 


80 


FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


near  the  Catskill  Mountains.  The  wood  of  the  mul- 
berry is  yellowish,  and  durable  in  contact  with  the 
ground.     The  trees  all  have  milky  juice. 

The  black  mulberry  {Moras  nigra),  another  native 
of  Asia,  has  large,  dull,  dark -green  leaves  tapering 
into  a  sharp  point,  rather  rough  above,  usually  not 
lobed  (divided),  fine-toothed,  and  evenly  balanced  on 
either  side  of  the  stem.  The  fruit  is  large  and  sweet, 
purple-black  in  color,  and  double  the  size  of  the  red 
mulberry;  it  is  much  esteemed  in  Europe.  The 
tree,  however,  is  rarely  cultivated  in   this   country, 

and  it  is  barely  hardy  above 
42°    north     latitude.      It 
grows   to   a   height   of 
from  20  to  30  feet. 

The     pa- 

PftDfiT 

Mulberry.  Per     mul" 
Broussonetia  berry       is 

„       „  lh  .,     ^W'^™-  cultivated 

Paper  Mulberry. 

from  Xew  York 
southward  as  a  shade  tree ;  its  leaves  are  very  hairy 
above,  downy  beneath,  round-toothed,  and  in  young 
trees  divided,  but  in  old  trees  somewhat  heart-shaped 
and  rarely  divided.  The  club-shaped  fruit,  ripe  in 
August,  is  dark  red,  sweet,  and  insipid.  The  tree 
grows  25  feet  or  so  high,  with  branches  which  hang 
low.     It  comes  from  Japan. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

I.  Simple  Alternate  Leaves. 

2.  With  teeth.  A.  Edge  not  divided. 

THE  BIRCHES. 

Black  Sweet  or       The  black,  sweet,  or  cherry  birch  has 

Cherry  Birch,  slender,   dark   reddish  -  brown   twio-s 

Betuia  hnta.       ^^  ft  delig]ltf  ul  aromatic  taste,  which 

is  a  sufficient  means  for  the  unmistakable  identifica- 
tion of  the  tree ;  the  bark  of  no  other  birch  possesses 
exactly  this  aromatic  flavor,  although  there  is  a  cer- 
tain sweetness  to  the  yellow  birch's  twigs.  It  is  from 
the  twiffs  of  the  black  birch  that  the  flavoring:  for 
birch  beer  is  obtained. 

This  tree  has  an  evenly  balanced,  oval-pointed  leaf, 
with  a  regular  double-toothed  edge,  which  is  an  easy 
means  of  distinguishing  it  from  its  neighbors.  Com- 
pare for  an  instant  my  leaf  drawings  of  the  black 
birch  and  the  American  elm  :  it  will  be  seen  at  once 
that  the  leaves  are  somewhat  similar  in  general  out- 

line,  in  double-toothed  edge,  and  in  prominent,  almost 
7  81 


82         FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


Black  Birch. 


THE   BIRCHES.  83 

conventional  veining.  But  here  the  resemblance  ends : 
the  birch  leaf  is  shiny,  the  elm  leaf  is  not — on  the 
contrary,  it  is  rough;  it  also  has  a  much  more  lop- 
sided figure.  Furthermore,  my  drawing  of  the  birch 
shows  that  the  leaves  grow  in  pairs  alternately  along 
the  stem  ;  the  elm  leaves  grow  singly  ;  then,  the  little 
elongated  dots  on  the  tiny  twigs  of  the  birch,  and  the 
downy,  short  leaf  stem,  both  of  which  bespeak  the 
Betula  tribe,  are  characteristics  wholly  unelmlike. 
There  is  also  another  distinguishing  mark  of  the  black- 
birch  leaf :  its  base  is  unmistakably  scalloped. *  Now, 
compare  this  shape  with  that  of  the  hop-hornbean 
leaf,  and  it  will  be  seen  that  the  scallop  in  the  latter 
is  extremely  slight.  These  are  minor  differences, 
which,  however,  should  not  escape  our  notice. 

I  find  the  black  birch  in  a  shrublike  condition  in 
Campton,  N.  H.,  much  more  frequently  than  in  tree 
form ;  but  when  it  does  reach  the  proportions  of  a 
tree  it  grows  from  20  to  TO  feet  high,  and  carries  a 
fairly  straight  trunk  covered  with  a  gray-brown  bark 
somewhat  resembling  the  cultivated  cherry,  but  with 
those  unmistakable  horizontal  marks  which  charac- 
terize the  birches. 

With  the  sunshine  distributed  over  its  brilliant 

*  The  botanical  expression  for  this  scalloped  base  Is  "cordate  " 

or  "heart-shaped";  but  I  refrain  from  using  a  term  which  might 
mislead  one  to  believe  the  entire  leaf  was  shaped  like  a  heart. 


84         FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

green  leaves  this  tree  makes  a  fine  show  in  an  open 
space  where  there  is  no  interference  with  its  vigorous 
growth.  Its  wood  is  reddish  brown,  line  grained,  and 
is  well  adapted  to  cabinet  work.  As  a  matter  of  fact, 
it  is  often  stained  to  imitate  mahogany,  and  so  treated 
one  is  completely  deceived  as  to  the  true  nature  of 
the  wood.  Its  bark  does  not  separate  into  thin  layers, 
like  that  of  the  paper  birch. 
Yellow  Birch.  The  yellow  birch  gets  its  name  from 
Betuia  lutea.  fts  yellowish  trunk ;  there  is  really 
little  yellow  in  it,  but  enough,  perhaps,  to  justify  the 
name ;  more  exactly,  I  should  describe  the  color  as 
silvery  yellow-gray.  Again,  those  horizontal  marks 
which  characterize  the  Betuia  family  are  sprinkled 
over  the  delicate,  silvery  bark ;  notice,  also,  the  way 
this  thin  bark  is  curled  and  frizzled  away  from  the 
trunk  ;  it  ornaments  the  latter  with  a  thousand  shin- 
ing, edges,  which  catch  and  hold  the  scattered,  flicker- 
ing sunlight  of  the  woods  so  that  the  tree  is  dis- 
tinctly separated  from  its  stalwart,  dull-hued,  rough- 
seamed  neighbors.  Indeed,  the  yellow  birch  possesses 
a  certain  unmistakable  femininity  of  character  which 
is  suggestive  of  some  tattered  and  disheveled  woodland 
nymph.  A  young  sapling  about  three  quarters  of  an 
inch  in  diameter,  whose  silvery-yellow  bark  is  in  per- 
fect condition,  makes  a  beautiful  cane  Avhen  tastefully 
mounted.     There  are  few  trees  which,  like  the  yellow 


THE   BIRCHES. 


B5 


Yellow  Birch. 


8G         FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 

birch,  ma j  boast  of  bark  with  a  texture  like  satin 
and  a  sheen  like  silver. 

This  yellow  birch  is  so  closely  allied  to  the  black 
lurch  that  I  must  point  out  the  differences  which  we 
may  observe  in  their  leaves.  The  yellow-birch  leaf 
is  rather  coarser  in  texture  and  toothed  edge ;  it  is 
not  so  conventional  in  figure  as  that  of  the  black 
birch;  it  is  often  quite  contracted  at  the  scalloped 
base,  which  is  not  so  decidedly  formed ;  its  leaf  stem 
is  exceedingly  downy,  also  the  back  of  the  leaf,  espe- 
cially over  the  veins ;  and,  lastly,  it  does  not  possess 
the  shiny,  bright-green  color  which  characterizes  the 
black  birch.  Besides  these  leaf  differences  there  are 
others :  the  catkin  is  less  long  and  more  egg-shaped, 
and  its  scales  are  larger  and  thinner;  but  the  fact 
that  the  yellow  birch  has  unmistakably  yellow  bark 
prevents  the  possibility  of  confusion  with  any  other 
of  the  species.  The  tree  attains  a  height  of  80  or  90 
feet  if  it  is  placed  in  advantageous  circumstances ;  I 
know  of  a  specimen  over  75  feet  high  near  Livermore 
Falls,  Plymouth,  E".  H.  The  wood  is  white,  and  not 
very  useful  except  as  fuel. 
White  or  The  common  white  birch,  sometimes 

Gray  Birch.       called  gray  birch,  is  an  American  tree 

1  r  oi  which  we  may  well   be  proud.     I 

think  it  possesses  a  feminine  grace  and  charm  which 

are  as  yet  unappreciated   by  those  who  seek   after 


THE   BIRCHES.  87 

ornamental  trees  with  which  to  decorate  parks  and 
private  grounds.  Its  long,  thin  branches  as  they  ex- 
tend outward  from  the  white  trunk  droop  in  many  a 
subtile  curve ;  the  ends  are  divided  into  an  infinite 
number  of  dark -brown,  wiry  branchlets  from  which 
depend  the  beautifully  formed  leaves.  These  are 
somewhat  triangular  in  shape,  taper  to  a  sharp  point, 
and  are  bright,  shiny  green ;  in  fact,  no  other  tree 
possesses  so  brilliant  a  leaf.  In  spring  the  tree  is 
bright  yellow-green,  and  furnishes  a  striking  contrast 
with  any  evergreen  wThich  may  happen  to  be  in  its 
vicinity. 

The  extreme  lightness  and  airiness  which  charac- 
terize this  birch  are  the  qualifications  which  assist  one 
most  in  its  identification.  If,  for  instance,  I  see  in 
the  distance  a  small  tree  with  white  trunk,  thin,  light 
yellow-green  foliage,  and  dark,  wiry  branches  dis- 
posed to  droop  (the  topmost  ones  are  decidedly 
vertical),  I  know  pretty  well  by  experience  that 
no  other  native  tree  except  the  gray  birch  answers 
to  that  description;  in  a  park  it  might  possibly  be 
confused  with  its  foreign  relations,  but  in  the  for- 
est it  is  unique.  Unfortunately,  the  beauty  of  the 
gray  birch  never  shows  itself  to  advantage  in  its  na- 
tive environment ;  in  the  struggle  for  existence  among 
its  crowded  neighbors,  much  of  its  femininity  and 
daintiness  is   completely  lost;    its   symmetry  is  im- 


88         FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 


White  or  Gray  Birch, 


THE   BIRCHES.  SO 

paired,  its  outlines  are  scrawny,  and  its  strength  is 
lost  in  tlie  effort  to  elbow  its  way  above  encroaching 
companions  of  a  more  vigorous  growth.  But  place 
the  tree  where  it  has  a  chance  to  do  its  best,  and  it 
will  develop  into  astonishingly  graceful  proportions. 

This  birch,  is  distinguished  from  its  near  relatives, 
by  several  marked  characteristics.  Notice  the  bough 
where  it  joins  the  white  trunk  ;  this  triangular  brown 
patch  below  the  branch  is  always  present  in  any  tree 
of  any  age.  The  leaf  stem  is  slender,  rather  long, 
and  not  downy ;  the  leaf  (often  growing,  as  in  my 
sketch,  in  pairs)  is  very  smooth  and  shiny  on  both 
sides;  also,  the  stem  being  slender  the  leaf  shakes 
with  the  slightest  breeze,  and  its  varnished  surface, 
reflecting  the  sunlight,  breaks  it  into  shifting,  spark- 
ling green  fire.  This  is  no  exaggeration  of  the  truth. 
Watch  some  tree  on  the  edge  of  a  dark  wood  on  a 
clear  day  in  early  June,  when  Zephyr  is  at  play 
among  its  branches,  and  the  flashes  of  green  light 
which  come  and  go  will  fairly  dazzle  the  eyes. 

The  white  bark  is  not  easily  separable  into  layers, 
and  it  lacks  that  freedom  from  knotty  imperfections 
which  makes  the  canoe  or  paper  lurch  so  dazzlingly 
white  in  broad  sunlight.  Often  in  very  young  trees 
the  bark  runs  through  dark  brown  to  tan  color,  and 
only  the  thickest  part  of  the  trunk  is  sparingly  white  : 
but  through  all  the  branches  and  over  the  trunk  are 


90         FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

the  same  lines  and  dots  which  always  mark  the  Betula 
tribe.  The  tree  is  small,  rarely  reaching  a  height  of 
more  than  30  feet.  Its  wood  is  white,  soft,  and  is  used 
mostly  for  fuel ;  rarely  it  is  made  into  spools  such 
as  are  common  in  the  weaving  mills  of  New  England. 
European  F°r  the  sake    of    comparison,    I   in- 

White  Birch,  troduce  here  a  sketch  of  the  Euro- 
pean white  birch.  This  foreign  rela- 
tive of  our  Betula  po/mlifolia,  which  is  indeed 
closely  allied  to  our  tree,  is  certainly  very  beautiful, 
and  is  becoming  quite  common  in  cultivation.  The 
specimen  which  I  have  sketched  was  taken  from  a 
tree  which  was  planted  in  front  of  a  private  residence 
in  Plymouth,  K.  H.*  It  is  a  cut-leaved  variety  of 
the  European  birch,  specifically  named  Betula  alba, 
var.  laciniata.  But  when  I  admit  its  beauty  (pos- 
sibly some  landscape  gardener  may  lift  his  eyebrows 
at  the  word  admit),  I  must  remind  those  who  have 
studiously  observed  our  own  gray  birch  that  its  Euro- 
pean relative  does  not  possess  the  power  of  flashing 
that  jewel-like  green  light  to  which  I  have  drawn 
attention.  In  a  word,  the  foreign  tree  possesses  a 
beautifully  shaped  leaf,  without  the  splendid  lively 
color  of  its  American  relative.     These  ornamentally 

*  This  beautiful  tree,  some  30  feet  in  height,  stands  near  the 
gateway  entering  the  grounds  of  Dr.  Robert  Burns.  On  these 
grounds  are  also  several  rare  trees  of  various  foreign  species. 


THE  BIRCHES. 


91 


European  White  Birch,  cut-leaved. 


slashed  leaves  (John  Kuskin  would  call  them  rent) 
are   rather   a   dark    green,   and    they   are   not   very 


92         FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

shiny — in  fact,  they  are  not  constituted  as  sunlight 
flashers. 

This  makes  a  vast  difference  with  the  appearance 
of  a  tree,  supposing,  of  course,  we  take  into  consid- 
eration its  effect  under  conditions  of  light  and  shade. 
I  could  identify  our  gray  birch  at  a  great  distance 
in  the  focus  of  strong  sunlight  gathered  from  a 
cloud-rent;  such  a  thing  would  hardly  be  possible 
with  any  other  tree.  The  European  birch  under 
similar  conditions  would  appear  at  best  commonplace, 
if,  indeed,  it  was  recognizable  at  all.  Then,  also,  in 
early  October,  when  our  own  birch  is  transformed 
into  pale,  shining  gold,  there  is  hardly  a  suggestion 
of  gold  in  its  European  relative.  I  have  seen  both 
trees  together  under  the  same  climatic  conditions,  and 
the  change  of  color  in  the  foreign  tree  was  not  com- 
parable  with  that  of  its  American  relative.  My  draw- 
ing is  sufficient  for  the  identification  of  this  particular 
European  birch. 

The  different  kinds  of  European  birch  (Betala 
alba)  are ;  var.  pubesce?is,  leaf  covered  with  white 
hairs ;  var.  pendula,  weeping ;  var.  laciniata,  cut- 
leaved  ;  var.  fastigiata,  pyramidal ;  and  var.  atro- 
jmrjmrea,  purple-leaved.  These  are  all  to  be  met 
with  in  parks  and  private  grounds,  but  as  yet  I 
think  none  of  them  have  escaped  from  cultiva- 
tion. 


THE  BIRCH  ES. 


93 


Paper,  Canoe,  or        The     splendid 

White  Birch,    white -trunked 

Btiula  papyri/era.     paper  or  (.;mne 

birch,  which  universally  goes 
by  the   less  specific  name  of 
white  birch,  is  so  well  known 
through  its  useful  and  beau- 
tiful  paperlike  bark  that  the 
identification  of  the  tree  is  de- 
pendent  on  no 
other  means.    But 
lest   it   should  be 
confused  with  its 
near       relative,     the 
gray  or   white    birch 
(B.   jpajndifoUa),   I 
draw     attention     to 
certain  differences. 
Unlike  the  gray 
birch,  the  extreme- 
ly  white    bark    is 
scarcely  marked  with 
a    distinct     triangular 
brown  patch,  from  the 
top  of  which   grows   the 
branch ;   indeed,  there  is 
hardly  any  brown  at  all 


Paper  or  Canoe  Birch. 


94         FAMILIAR  TREES   AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

below  the  branch ;  in  the  gray  birch  it  is  never  ab- 
sent. The  bark  on  a  large  tree  will  hold  broad 
spaces  unfurrowed  by  knotty  imperfections.  The 
paperlike  layers  of  the  bark  are  easily  separated  into 
numerous  thin  sheets,  varying  from  a  buffish  cream 
color  to  a  light  tan,  the  lightest  color  belonging  to 
the  outermost  layers.  The  leaf  is  altogether  unlike 
that  of  the  gray  birch ;  its  stem  is  short  and  often 
very  downy  (notice  in  my  drawing  that  the  stems  are 
short,  thick,  and  not  sharp  or  clean  looking) ;  its  out- 
line is  oval,  with  a  moderate  point,  and  the  teeth  are 
coarsely  irregular ;  in  color  it  is  dull  green,  smooth 
above  and  hairy  below,  especially  on  the  ribs  and  at 
their  angles ;  at  the  base  it  is  of  tenest  rounded,  but 
now  and  then  it  is  remotely  heart-shaped. 

The  branches  have  no  tendency  to  droop,  as  do 
those  of  the  gray  birch,  and  the  whole  color  effect  of 
the  tree  is  darker.  It  is  also  a  tall  variety  of  the 
Birch  family,  sometimes  reaching  a  height  of  75  feet. 
The  beauty  of  the  white-trunked  tree  in  the  North- 
ern forests  can  scarcely  be  overestimated ;  it  is  one  of 
those  woodland  characters  which  does  not  seem  to 
lose  anything  by  the  overcrowding  process.  I  have 
seen  great,  handsome  specimens  in  the  dense  woods 
of  the  White  Mountains,  undespoiled  of  their  virgin 
white  bark  by  the  hands  of  tourists,  growing  straight 
up  in  the  air  and  sending  out  widespreading  branches 


WHITE  OR   PAPER  BIRCH 

Campton,  Grafton  Co.,  N.  H 


THE   151 UC I  IKS. 


«G 


as  if  there  were  no 
forest   in    the   way 
and  room    was   not 
scarce,     for     tlieir 
topmost        bouglis 
quite  overspread  in 
radius     two     otlier 
comrades  of  lesser  stature  but 
denser  growth.     Want  of  sun- 
light and  the  perpetual  gloom 
of  the  primitive  forest  do  not 
seriously  retard   the   growth 
of   the  paper   birch,   other- 
wise we  could   not  see  its 
vigorous  stem  stand  like  a 
white  giant  in  the   dim 
distance    of     the     dark 
woods  as  we   look    from 
one   mountain  toward  an- 
other. 

The  wood  of  this 
birch  is  huffish  white 
and  close-grained ;  it 
makes  a  splendid  hard  floor, 

and  for  interior  finish  has  no  equal  among  the 
plainer  kinds  of  ornamental  wood.  It  makes  an  ex- 
cellent  fuel,  although    it  is   quickly   consumed.      In 


Young  sprout  of  Paper  Birch. 


96         FAMILIAR  TREES   AND   THEIR   LEAVES. 

the  woods  it  is  subject  to  rapid  decay,  and  frequent- 
ly one  may  meet  with  an  old  fallen  specimen,  appar- 
ently sound  if  one  judges  by  the  look  of  the  bark, 
but  really  rotten  to  the  core.  The  bark  is  water- 
proof, and  is  used  by  the  Indians  and  the  North- 
western hunters  for  the  construction  of  canoes,  the 
seams  of  which  are  neatly  sewed  together  and  made 
water-tight  by  the  use  of  pitch. 

There  are  often  great  variations  from  the  typical 
forms  of  tree  leaves.  I  have  drawn  one  of  these 
variations,  which  may  commonly  be  noticed  in  the 
seedling  paper  birch.  The  specimen  shows  a  strongly 
double-toothed  leaf,  whose  whole  character — stem  and 
surface — was  downy.  The  back  of  the  leaf  was  par- 
ticularly hairy,  as  well  as  the  twig,  which  was  some- 
thing of  an  old  gold  color,  characterized  by  the  usual 
dots  of  the  Betula  family.  The  leaf  was  soft  to  the 
touch,  and  on  the  under  side  the  veins  were  white, 
with  rather  rusty-looking  hairs.  My  drawing  was 
taken  from  a  young  shoot. 

Red  or  River  Birch.  The  red  birch,  sometimes  called  river 
Betula  nigra.  birch,  is  rather  a  Southern  variety, 
seen  at  its  best  south  of  Baltimore.  The  leaf  at 
the  edge  is  very  unevenly  double-toothed,  and  its 
aspect  is  alderlike.  The  outline  is  angularly  egg- 
shaped,  and  the  stem  is  short  (about  half  an  inch 
long)  and  downy.     The  whole  leaf  has   a  whitish- 


THE   BIRCHES. 


97 


green  look  on  the  under  side,  caused   by   the  soft, 
downy  growth  over  its  surface;  the  upper  side  i 
medium   green,   not   so    bright  as   that  of   the  gray 
birch.      The  branches   are  dark  brown,  the  smaller 

ones  often  ochre  or  cinnamon  color,  and  always  downy 
when  young.  The  bark  of  the  trunk  is  dark  red- 
brown,  and  often  hangs  in  shreds  of  a  lighter  browu 


Red  Birch. 


hue ;  but  the  trunk  never  has  quite  the  disheveled 

appearance  common  to  the  yellow  birch,  although  the 

thin  bark  often  hangs  and  curls  about  the  body  of 

the  tree  in  the  same  charming,  disorderly  fashion. 

Perhaps  the  best  way  to  identify  this  birch  is  by  the 

peculiarly  irregular  leaf;  its  rude  outline  resembles 

the  alder,  but  at  once  the  lines  and  dots  on  the  trunk 

and   branches   show  the  birch  character.      The  red 

birch  is  common  in  New  Jersey  and  in  Bucks  County, 

Pa.     One  need  not  look  for  the  tree  north  of  Massa- 
8 


98 


FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR   LEAVES. 


chusetts,  as  it  belongs  in  its  wild  state  southward,  and 
westward  as  far  as  Minnesota.  It  grows  beside  the 
banks  of  streams,  and  attains  a  height  of  30  to  50 
feet.  It  is  the  only  birch  which  can  be  found  in  a 
warm  climate.  Unfortunately,  the  botanical  name  in- 
dicates that  it  is  black ;  really  it  should  be  called  B. 
rubra,  and  there  is  one  authority  for  this  name.* 

I  can  not  leave  the  birches  without  calling  atten- 
tion to  an  extreme  species,  a  shrub  rather  than  a  tree, 
which   shows  how  far   Nature  sometimes 
deviates  from  her  commonest  types.     B. 
glandulosa   is   a   dwarf    variety   of    the 
birch,  with  miniature  leaves  and  stunted 
stems,   which    is    found   among 
the  high    mountains    of    New 
England.     My  sketch  is  taken 
from  a  specimen  found  on  the 
Presidential  Range  of  the  White 
Dwarf  Birch.  Mountains,      between      Mounts 

Adams  and  Jefferson ;  it  grew 
close  to  the  ground,  hugging  the  rocky  foundations, 
and  the  smooth,  brown  branches  were  conspicuously 
dotted  with  resinous,  wartlike  glands,  to  use  Gray's 
own  words.  The  bush  grows  from  1  to  4  feet  high. 
The  leaf  is  scarcely  over  three  quarters  of  an  inch  long. 


*  Michaux. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

I.  Simple  Alternate  Leaves. 

2.  With  teeth.  A.  Edge  not  divided. 

THE  ALDER,   ETC. 

Speckled  or  The  speckled   or  hoary  alder,   prop- 

Hoary  Alder.  er]v  speaking,  is  a  shrub  ;  yet  it  often 

Alnusincana.         giwg    ^    feet    ^    ^    gometimes 

has  one  substantial  trunk.  There  is  scarcely  a  brook 
or  streamlet  passing  through  the  White  Mountain 
region  which  is  not  shaded  by  the  very  dark  olive- 
green  foliage  of  the  speckled  alder,  and  I  call  to 
mind  mile  after  mile  of  valley  road  edged  by  this 
beautiful  bushy  tree ;  indeed,  it  might  justly  be 
called  the  "roadside  genius"  of  sylvan  New  Hamp- 
shire. I  think  the  "speckled  beauty"  of  the  woods, 
although  he  does  not  seem  to  know  it,  owes  this 
alder  an  enormous  debt  of  gratitude  for  hiding  his 
cool  and  pebbly  retreat  and  entangling  the  angler's 

"fly."     Whoever  has  fished  in  a  mountain  stream  lias 

<J9 


100       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


unwillingly  formed  more  than  a  "  scraping  acquaint- 
ance "  with  this  tree — the  brook  trout's  best  friend. 

Its     leaves 
are   extremely 
coarse,  irregu- 
larly   toothed, 
prominently 
brown  -  veined, 
very    downy    be- 
neath       (especially 
when  young),  and  dull, 
dark   olive  above.     The 


bark  of  the   twigs  is  also  olive- 
green,    and    that    of    the 
trunk     is    shiny,     ruddy 
green.     The  purple  and 


£Sfta=,v»\r\       yellow     catkin     which 
h=  l--I^A?\        appears   in   sjDring   is 


extremely  graceful, 
and  scatters  clouds  of 
pollen  dust  if  disturbed. 
In  the  fall  we  will  find  the  catkin  buds  and  the 
fi cones"  on  the  same  bush,  like  my  sketch.  The 
cones  resemble  red-pine  cones  in  miniature. 

The  European  alder  (Alnus  glutinosa),  often 
planted  in  our  parks,  is  a  handsome  tree  from  25  to 
60  feet  in  height,  with  a  leaf  closelv  resembling  that 


THE   ALDER,  ETC.  1<U 

of  the  speckled  alder,  abruptly  pointed,  and  wavy  at 

the  fine-toothed  edge;  there  is  a  tuft  of  down  at  the 

angles  of  the  veins  beneath.     The  younger  branches 

and  the  steins  of  the  leaves  are  usually   glutinous. 

Several  forms  of  the  tree  are  cut-leaved. 

„     _     .  The  hop  hornbeam,  sometimes  called 

Hop  Hornbeam.  x 

Ironwood.  ironwood,  is  a  slender  tree  with  ex- 

Ostrya  Virginica.     ceedingly  hard  wood,  which  is  used 

Ostrya  Virginiana.    , 

in  making  cogs  tor  mill-wheels,  teeth 
for  wooden  rakes,  mallets,  axe  handles,  cart  pins,  and 
other  farming  implements  which  must  possess  extra 
strength.  Its  leaf  is  beautifully  formed,  exquisitely 
sharp-toothed,  and  has  a  somewhat  dull,  light-green 
color ;  a  stem  scarcely  a  quarter  of  an  inch  long  joins 
it  wdth  the  slender  twig,  from  which  it  grows  out 
horizontally.  A  comparison  of  this  leaf  with  that 
of  the  black  birch  reveals  a  certain  similarity ;  the 
great  difference,  howrever,  lies  in  the  texture:  the 
hornbeam's  leaf  has  a  rough  finish,  and  the  birch 
leaf  shines;  furthermore,  it  has  a  stem  fully  three 
quarters  of  an  inch  long. 

The  bark  of  the  trunk  is  finely  furrowed  in  per- 
pendicular lengths  of  four  inches^  rarely  more.  The 
young  shoots  are  olive-green  of  a  ruddy  tone  dotted 
with  dark  brown.  The  fruit,  as  one  may  sec  by  my 
drawing,  greatly  resembles  the  hop;  it  appears  in 
August  or  September.     The  tree   rarely  grows  over 


102       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


Hop  Hornbeam. 


THE   ALDER,   ETC. 


103 


35  feet  high,  and  has  light,  slender  branches ;  these, 

when  covered  with  thick  foliage  and  the  hoplike  fruit, 

are  extremely  graceful. 

The  hornbeam,  which  is  also  called 
Hornbeam,  or 

Water  Beech,  blue  or  water  beech,  is  common  on 
Carpinvs  the  banks  of  streams  from  New  Eng- 

Caroliniana.    ,        ,  -.r. 

land  to  Minnesota  and  southward. 
It  may  be  distinguished  from  the  hop  hornbeam  by 
its  little  three-pointed  leaflet  or  bract,  which  is  placed 
in  pairs  base  to  base  with  the  small  nuts ; 
these  leaflets  form  an  elongated  cluster, 
which  remains  hanging  on  the  tree  until 
late  in  the  autumn.  The  leaf  stem 
is  about  half  an  inch  long,  and  the 
leaf  itself,  fuzzy  when  young  but 
soon  nearly  smooth,  resembles 
that  of  the  hop  hornbeam,  except 
that  it  is  rather  unevenly  toothed. 
The  bark  of  this  tree  is  gray, 
^  smooth,  and  not  unlike  that  of 
the  beech,  although  it  has  in  addi- 
tion occasional  ridges  which  mark 
the  trunk  perpendicularly.  The  wood  is  very  hard, 
and  whitish.  The  water  beech  is  a  6low  grower, 
and  rarely  attains  a  height  of  over  20  feet,  except 
in  the  South  among  the  Alleghanies.  In  the  moun- 
tains of  New  Hampshire  it  is  quite  absent. 


Hornbeam. 


104       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 


Chestnut. 

Castaiiea  sativa. 
Castanea  detitata. 


The  chestnut  is  so  familiar  to  every 
one  who  lives  in  or  near  one  of  our 
great  cities,  in  whose  vicinity  it  is 
pretty  sure  to  be  planted,  that  a  description  of  the 
tree  seems  wholly  unnecessary  for  its  identification. 
Yet  there  are  a  few  interesting  facts  about  the 
luxuriant  chestnut  which  we  would  do  well  to  re- 
member. 

It  is  certainly  a  most  extraordinary,  rapid-growing 
tree,  which  in  giving  is  only  rivaled  by  the  sugar 
maple.  At  five  years  of  age  it  will  actually  bear 
fruit ;  in  fifteen  years'  time  it  is  valuable  as  timber, 
and  if  cut  down  then  its  shoots,  which  grow  even 

more  rapidly  than  seedlings,  de- 
velop into  fine  trees  within  an- 
other ten  years.  An  orchard  of 
chestnuts  will  bring  its  owner 
larger  returns  than  many  an  ap- 
ple orchard  of  the  same  size. 
The  fruit  is  brought  into  our 
cities  in  autumn  by  thousands  of 
bushels,  and  sold  at  retail  in  the 
stores  and  on  the  corners  of  busy  streets  at  the  rate 
of  about  six  dollars  per  bushel.  Indeed,  the  Italian 
who  sells  his  tiny  measure  of  roasted  chestnuts  for 
five  cents  brings  the  average  nearer  eight  dollars 
per  bushel.      In  Iowa  certain  orchards  planted  eight- 


Chestnut  Fruit. 


THE  ALDER,   ETC. 


105 


Chestnut. 


106       FAMILIAR  TREES   AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


een  years  ago   are  bringing   in  their   owners  better 
returns  than  the  same  acreage  in  farm  products. 

The  chestnut  has  a  very 
dark  green  leaf  of  a  decid- 
edly rugged  character ;  its 
teeth  are  like  those  of  a 
circular  saw,  and  its  ribs 
give  it  a  somewhat  corru- 
gated surface,  which  I  have 
tried  to  portray  in  my  sketch. 
The  tree  grows  from  50  to  80 
feet  high,  has  very  coarse 
grayish  bark,  and  its  luxuriant 
deep -green  foliage,  crowned  with 
le  light  rusty  tinge  of  innumera- 
3le  developing  burs  in  the  month 
of  August,  forms  a  color  effect  so 
soft  and  beautiful  that  it  com- 
mands the  admiration  of  the  most 
casual  observer.  In  North  Caro- 
lina there  are  many  specimens 
whose  trunks  measure  sixteen  feet  in  cir- 
cumference, so  it  is  not  always  a  fine  leaf 
which  makes  a  beautiful  tree.  The  wood 
is  useful  and  durable,  rather  soft,  yellow- 
ish, and  has  a  coarse  but  handsome  grain,  which  is  at 
once  apparent  in  the  gilding  of  many  a  picture  frame. 


Chinquapin. 


■W.*;»v 


■ 


wm 


>>\i 


-  ■ 


4 

■ 


V\ 


'\ 


^V. 


CHESTNUT. 

Upper  Solburg,  Bucks  Co.,  Penn. 


TOE  ALDER,   ETC.  107 

Chinquapin.  The  chinquapin  is  a  small  variety  of 
Castanea pumiia.  the  chestnut,  common  in  the  South, 
which  grows  from  7  to  35  feet  high.  The  bur,  about 
an  inch  wide,  hears  a  single  small  nut  rounder  than  a 
chestnut.  The  leaf  is  like  that  of  the  chestnut,  hut 
has  a  downy  or  woolly  appearance  beneath,  is  usually 
less  distinctly  toothed,  and  is  seldom  over  five  inches 
long.  The  tree  grows  wild  in  southern  New  Jersey, 
Pennsylvania,  Ohio,  and  southward.  Its  foliage  is 
whitish  olive-green. 

Beech  ^he  beech  tree  is  common  in  all  our 

Fagus  ferruginea.  woods  North  and  South ;  it  extends 
Fagus  Americana.  westward  to  Missouri  and  south- 
ward to  Florida  and  Texas,  and  attains  its  finest 
growth  in  the  southern  Mississippi  River  \r alley. 
In  the  middle  of  winter,  when  the  forest  is  bare  of 
leaves,  we  ought  to  be  able  to  recognize  the  beech 
at  a  glance :  no  other  tree  has  the  same  smooth,  light 
gray,  spotty  bark ;  no  other  the  same  smooth,  round- 
ish curves  on  long,  low  branches  which  extend  hori- 
zontally a  good  distance  from  the  trunk.  The  bark 
of  trees  may  easily  be  grouped  under  three  classes: 
first,  perpendicularly  ridged;  second,  horizontally 
striped;  and,  third,  round  spotted.  To  the  first  class 
belong  a  great  number  of  trees,  including  the  elms; 
to  the  second  belongs  the  birch;  and  to  the  third 
belongs  the  beech,  almost  alone.     I  think,  then,  there 


108       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


is  no  reason  why  one  should  not  know  a 
beech  even  in  midwinter. 

The  leaves  of  this  tree  are 
most   wonderfully  delicate   and 
charmingly    simple  ;    indeed,    I 
know   of   nothing    in    the   leaf 
world  quite  so  silky  and  thin, 
yet   firm.      On  the  under  side 
of  a  beech 
leaf  the  del- 
icate,   whit- 
ish,       wiry 
veins       run 


straight   from 
the  center  rib  to 
the  small   sharp  tooth  at 
the   edge ;    between,    the 
surface   is   smooth    and 
green,  not  the  slightest 
indication    of     texture 
showing   itself   unless 
one  uses  a  glass.     The 
slender  twigs  which  bear 


Beech  and  Fruit. 


the  leaves  spread  out  hori- 
zontally, not  droopingly  like  elm  leaves,  are  also  a 
marvel  of  delicacy.  The  tiny  three-cornered  nut  in- 
cased in  the  miniature  bur  is  familiar  to  every  Amer- 


THE   ALDER,   ETC.  109 

ican  boy,  and  needs  no  praise  here.  The  tree  often 
grows  to  a  height  of  1<><>  feet  in  the  South;  north- 
ward it  is  commonly  50  feet  high,  [n  the  early  au- 
tumn it  is  particularly  beautiful;  all  its  leaves  turn 
an  even,  clear,  pale  golden  yellow,  which  Beems  on  a 
sunny  day  to  diffuse  a  strange  radiance  in  its  imme- 
diate vicinity.  With  my  eyes  closed  I  have  been  sen- 
sible of  the  peculiar  light  reflected  from  the  tree  in 
its  yellow  dress.  There  is  no  prettier  combination  of 
color  than  that  of  the  golden  leaves  and  white-spotted 
gray  and  greenish  trunk.  The  wood  is  very  hard, 
close-grained,  and  is  used  for  making  chairs,  loom 
spools,  shoe  lasts,  and  milking  stools.  The  tree  is  so 
strikingly  beautiful  in  its  winter  aspect  that  it  has 
become  a  favorite  subject  with  several  well-known 
artists ;  Mr.  W.  L.  Palmer,  in  particular,  delights  to 
portray  its  picturesque  and  stolid  gray  trunk  casting 
blue  shadows  over  the  sunlit  snow.  It  has  been  well 
named  "  the  painted  beech,"  for  no  other  tree  has  a 
trunk  so  attractively  painted  by  Nature. 

The  European  beech  (Fagus  syhatica),  occasion- 
ally planted  in  our  parks,  is  the  tree,  I  believe,  which 
is  indirectly  responsible  for  the  downfall  of  Mac- 
beth.    It  was  not  the  Birnam  beeches-   which  cost 


*  The  old  forest,  Birnam  Wood,  has  long  sine.'  disappeared, 
and  in  its  place  is  a  meager  young  growth  scarce!}  deserving  the 
name. 


HO       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR   LEAVES. 

Mm  his  life,  but  something  very  nearly  related  to 
them — spears !  The  leaf  of  this  tree  resembles  that 
of  its  American  relative,  but  it  is  broader,  shorter, 
and  in  many  varieties  it  is  wavy,  without  teeth ; 
in  others  it  is  deeply  cut  at  the  margin.  The  pur- 
ple or  copper  beech  (var.  atrqparpurea)*  is  a  va- 
riety with  a  rounded  figure,  very  dark  copper-colored 
foliage,  and  somewhat  curved  leaves  sparsely  toothed. 
There  are  several  handsome  specimens  in  the  Public 
Garden,  Boston.  The  tree  is  very  slow  in  unfolding 
its  leaves,  and  it  is  extremely  loath  to  part  with  them ; 
for  that  matter,  the  beeches  often  hold  their  faded, 
ghostly,  brown-white  leaves  throughout  the  winter. 

*  The   latest  name  for  the   copper  beech  is  Fagus  sylvatica 
fuliis  atrorubentibus. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

I.  Simple  Alternate  Leaves. 

2.  With  teeth.  A.  Edge  not  divided. 

THE   WILLOWS. 

Goat  Willow.  Many  of  the  willows,  more  especially 
SaUx  Caprea.  those  under  cultivation,  have  become 
so  greatly  mixed  that  it  is  not  easy  to  discriminate 
between  them.*  One  of  the  most  troublesome  ones  in 
this  respect — the  goat  willow — comes  from  Europe,  but 
it  is  very  frequently  seen  in  cultivation  in  this  coun- 
try. It  furnishes  the  stock  or  the  foundation,  so  to 
speak,  for  that  beautiful  umbrella-shaped  tree  which  is 
known  in  our  parks  and  gardens  as  the  Kilmarnock 
willow,  of  a  "weeping"  form.  But  this  willow  may 
at  once  be  distinguished  by  its  roundish  leaf;  it  is 
oval  or  long-oval  in  shape,  thick,  deep  green  above 

*  It  is  a  singular  fact  that  many  willows  must  be  grafted  on 
other  species  quite  a  distance  above  the  root,  otherwise  they  never 
attain  any  considerable  height — that  is,  if  planted  in  the  shape  uf 


cuttings. 


Ill 


112       FAMILIAR  TREES   AND   THEIR   LEAVES. 


and  rather  soft-downy  below.    The  catkins,  which  are 

bright  yellow,  appear 
in  early  spring  long 
before  the  leaves. 
The    goat   willow 
has    brown    or    red- 
dish-brown branches, 
and    grows   not   over 
30  feet  high.      It  is  adapted 
to  dry  situations. 
Heart-leaved  Willow.   The  heart-leaved  wil- 

SaHx  cordata.  JQW  may  a]so    \yQ   eag[. 

ly  distinguished  by  its  leaf,  which  is 
usually  inclined  to  a  scalloped  form  at 
the  base.     But  Gray  says  this  is  a  most 

widely     distributed    and 
variable  species  with  an 
inappropriate  name,  as 
its   leaves   are   seldom 
heart-shaped  at  the  base.      However, 
my  drawing  was  made  from  a  speci- 
men obtained  at  the  side  of  a  road  in 
the  valley  of  the  Pemigewasset  Riv- 
er,   New    Hampshire,    and     having 
compared  it  with   another   specimen 
which   grew   in    southern    New  York,  I  found    the 
differences    wholly    insignificant.      A   distinguishing 


Heart-leaved  Willow. 


THE   WILLOWS. 


113 


characteristic  of  the  leaf  of  this  tree  is  the  conspic- 
uous little  leafy  formation  (called  a  stipule)  at  the 
junction  of  the  leaf  stem  with  the  branclilet ;  this  is 
always  present.  The  leaf  is  green  on  either  side, 
scarcely  paler  but  downy  beneath,  and  finely  tool  I 
The  heart-leaved  willow  grows  from  8  to  20  feet 
high,  and  is  very  common  in  low  and  wet  places. 

Long-leaved  Willow.    The  l°ng-leaved 
SaHx  longifolia.         willow   is  easily 

ISalix  fluviatilis.  •       i         i 

J  recognized      by 

its  extremely  narrow,  long  leaf, 
which  tapers  at  each  end  and  is 
rather  coarsely  toothed.  It  is 
often  a  shrub,  but  occasionally, 
when  favored  by  circumstances, 
it  attains  a  height  of  20  feet. 

This  species  is  common  west- 
ward, but  rare  along  the  Atlantic 
coast  from  Maine  to  the  Potomac 
River,  Virginia. 

Crack  Willow.      One  of  our  larg- 

Salixfragilis.        est    wiH0ws — the 

crack  willow — came  to  us  from  Europe,  and  was 
planted  at  an  early  date  in  the  vicinity  of  Boston,  in 
some  of  the  older  cities  and  towns  of  New  Hampshire, 
and  elsewhere  in  the  North.  It  has  since  become  ex- 
tensively naturalized.  Its  twigs  are  largely  used  in 
9 


Long  leaved  Willow. 


1U       FAMILIAR   TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


Crack  Willow 


THE   WILLOWS.  1  1 ;, 

■ 

the  manufacture  of  baskets.*  This  willow  crows  5<  > 
to  75  feet,  and  under  favorable  conditions  90  feet 
high.  I  know  of  a  very  old  and  handsome 
specimen  in  central  New  Hampshire,  with 
a  spread  of  over  fifty  feet,  and  a  remarkably 
picturesque  contour ;  it  is  planted  opposite  an 
old  and  interesting  farmhouse,  in  combina- 
tion with  which  it  forms  a  very  beautiful  pic- 
ture. The  crack  willow  is  not  sufficiently  ap- 
preciated as  an  ornamental  tree ;  it  has  been  |V 
too   often  displaced  by  the  weeping  willow, 

r  J  x       °  '  Magnified 

whose   conventional    and   sober   aspect   is   a  teeth  of 

Crack 

poor  substitute  for  the  cheerfulness  and  willow. 
vivacity  of  the  other  tree  with  its  scintillant  foliage.f 
The  crack  willow  may  be  identified  by  its  shining  leaf, 
which  has  two  tiny  excrescences  at  the  base  just  at 
the  junction  with  the  leaf  stem,  and  rather  thick, 
fine  teeth  ;  these,  when  magnified,  look  like  my 
sketch  at  A.  The  under  side  of  the  leaf  is  whitish 
and  smooth.  The  twigs  are  yellow-green,  polished, 
and  very  brittle  at  the  base ;  hence  the  name  of  the 
tree. 

*  It  was  imported  in  the  especial  interest  of  basket  manufac- 
ture before  the  Revolutionary  War. 

f  The  sparkling  color  of  the  crack  willow's  foliage  is  caused  by 
the  swaying  of  the  firm  leaves  in  the  wind.  The  weeping  willow 
never  shows  this  effect,  but  its  drooping  leaves  have  a  listless 
motion. 


116       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

White  Willow.  The  white  willow,  also  imported  from 
Saiix  alba.  Europe,  is  similar  in  many  respects  to 
the  foregoing  species ;  in  fact,  it  has  become  so  much 
mixed  with  it  that  a  recognition  of  either  species  by 
means  of  the  leaves  is  far  from  easy. 
There  are  also  several  va- 
rieties of  the  white  wil- 
low. In  its  typical  form 
the  twigs  are  olive,  and  the 
leaves  are  somewhat  silky  on 

sides.      In  var.  mtellina   the  twigs  are  ^P 

yellow ;  in  var.  ccerulea  they  are  olive,  and 
the  leaves,  smooth  above,  are  a  trine  bluish 
green.  In  var.  argentea  the  foliage  is  very  wmow. 
whitish — silvery  gray  ;  but  in  each  instance  the  leaves 
in  outline  taper  both  ways,  and  have  sharp,  thick 
teeth.  The  wood  of  the  white  willow  is  used  in  the 
manufacture  of  charcoal  for  gunpowder.  The  tree 
is  very  common  throughout  the  country. 
Weeping  Willow.  It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  say  that  the 
Saiix  Babyionica.  weeping  willow  is  also  a  species  intro- 
duced from  Europe ;  but  it  is  extensively  cultivated 
here,  and  is  usually  planted  beside  the  water.  Gray 
says  in  many  places  it  has  spread  along  river  banks 
and  lake  shores  through  the  drifting  of  detached 
branches.  The  large,  graceful  tree  with  its  long 
pendulous   branchlets    is   too   familiar   an   object  to 


THE   WILLOWS.  117 

need  description.  There  is  a  variety  called  annularis 
(hoop  willow),  with  leaves  almost  curved  into  rings. 
Black  willow.  The  black  willow  has  rather  rough, 
Salix  nigra.  blackish  bark,  and  a  woolly-stemmed, 
variable  leaf  which  is  most  often  attenuated  lance- 
shaped.*  There  is,  besides, 
a  little  stipule  (leafy  termi- 
nal) at  the  junction  of  the 
leaf  stem  with  the  branchlet, 
though  this  may  not  always  be 
present.  The  branches  are  very 
brittle  at  the  base.  The  leaf  is 
commonly  small,  not  much  over  two 
inches  in  length,  and  when  mature  is 
smooth,  except  beneath,  on  the  midrib,  which 
is  woolly.  This  willow  is  common  on  the 
banks  of  streams  and  lakes.  In  salix  nigra  Black 
var.  falcata  the  leaves  are  extremely  long, 
narrow,  and  frequently  scythe-shaped ;  they  are  fur- 
nished with  stipules  (leafy  terminals  to  the  leaf 
stem)  which  do  not  fall  off  when  the  leaves  are 
young  ;  the  edges  are  very  finely  and  sharply 
toothed.  The  black  willow  grows  from  15  to  35 
feet  high. 

*  I  mean,  for  instance,  wider  nearest  the  base  of  the  leaf,  then 
gradually  narrowing  to  the  tip;  but  one  must  not  rely  too  much 
on  this  form.    The  Leaves  are  very  variable. 


H8       FAMILIAR  TREES   AND   THEIR   LEAVES. 


Western  Black 


The    Western    black    willow    is 
Willow,  found   from   central  New   York 

Salix  amygdaloides.    wegtward        to        Missouri.  The 

leaves  are  rather  oval-lance-shaped,  pale  or 
often  hairy  beneath,  and  have   long,  slen- 
der stems ;    the  little  stipules  (encircling 
the  stems  like  leaflets)  fall  oil  when  the 
leaves  are  yet  young.     This  tree  grows 
from  15  to  40  feet  high,  and  is  common 
on  the  banks  of  streams  from  Ohio  to 
Missouri. 

Shining  Willow.     The    shining   willow  may 
Salix  ivtida.       "pg  recognized  at  once  by 
its  bright  leaf,  which  is   shiny    on   both 
sides,  deep  green  above   and   lighter  be- 
low;  the   shape  is  elliptical,  with   an  extremely 
elongated,  sharp  point.      The  branchlets  are 
also  shiny  and  olive-green.      The  shining 
willow  is  rather  a  shrub  than  a  tree,  and 
grows  only  15  feet  high  at  most.      It 
is  extremely  beautiful  in  bright  sun- 
shine by  reason  of  its  glossy  leaf, 
and  it  commonly  grows  on  the 
banks  of  streams  from  Maine  to 
Pennsylvania,       westward      and 
northward.  It  is  sometimes  called 
American  bay  willow. 


Western 
Black  Willow 


Shining  Willow. 


THE   WILLOWS. 


119 


Long-beaked  Willow. 


Long-beaked  Willow.   rY}iC  long-beaked  willow  is  a  very 
Saiix  rostrata.  n     gpecies      wliieli      rarely 

Halix  Hi  bb  tana,         ^  1 


120      FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 

grows  to  the  dignity  of  a  tree ;  it  is  seldom  over  15 
feet  high.  The  leaf  is  so  pronounced  in  character 
that  I  think  few  of  us  can  fail  to  recognize  it  at  a 
glance;  it  is  thin,  leathery,  large,  deep  olive-green 
above,  and  whitish,  blue-green  below;  when  young 
it  is  velvety  on  the  under  side,  but  this  velvet  tex- 
ture is  nearly  lost  as  the  leaf  becomes  older ;  on  the 
upper  side  there  is  also  an  inclination  toward  downi- 
ness. My  drawing  shows  the  edge  of  the  leaf 
scalloped  rather  than  toothed,  and  the  surface  some- 
what broken  in  lights  and  shadows.  This  willow  is 
common  on  roadsides  and  in  moist  or  dry  grounds 
from  Maine  to  Pennsylvania,  westward  and  north- 
ward. It  may  be  found  beside  the  streams  which 
wind  through  the  valleys,  and  at  an  elevation  of  over 
two  thousand  feet  among  the  mountains  of  New 
Hampshire. 


CIIAPTEE  IX. 


I*  Simple  Alternate  Leaves. 

2.  With  teeth.      A.  Edge  not  divided. 
THE  POPLARS. 


White  Poplar. 


Although 


P.  Alba. 


Abele  Tree,    the     white 
ulus  alba.  i 

poplar,  or, 
as  it  is  frequently 

called,  abele  tree, 
is  not  American, 
it  lias  become  so 
familiar  through 
wide  cultivation 
in     this     countrv 

i 

that  I  must  give 
it  especial  notice. 
It  may  be  iden- 
titled  easily  by 
the  extremely  white, 
cotton v   look    of    the 


121 


122       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


P.  Alba,  var.  Nivea 


under    side   of    its   leaf, 

which       is       variously 

shaped  according  to 

the  varieties   which 

I  have  drawn.    The 

branches  of  this  tree 

are    also    downy    and 

white   when    young,   and 

its    roots   are   apt  to   produce 

numerous  suckers.     Its  typical 

form  is  less  grown  here  than 

the  varieties. 

The  variety    of   the  white 
lar  which,    according   to    Prof. 
Bailey,    is   commonest    in    this 
country,    is     called    P. 
alba,   var.    nivea.*      Its 
leaves  have  three  or  five 
maplelike    divisions,    and 
they  are  very  cottony  be- 
neath.    Another  variety  intro- 
duced  into   Europe   in   1875,  from 
Turkistan,  is    called  P.    alba,   var. 
Bolleana.     This  tree  has  a  compact- 
p.Aiba,var.Boiieana.  growing   habit,    something    like   the 


*  Vide  The  Cultivated  Poplars,  Bulletin  68,  L.  H.  Bailey. 


THE   POPLARS. 


123 


Lombardy  poplar ;  its  leaves  are  rather  more  deeply 
divided  than  those  of  the  var.  nimea.  The  white 
poplars   are   rapid  growers,  and  frequently  attain  a 


height  of  from  50  to  80  feet. 


American  Aspen. 


American  Aspen.      TllC    American    aspen    is    not    com- 
Poplar.  nionly  known    by  this   name  ;    it   is 

Fopuiustremuloides.  mogt  frequently  called  by  the  coun- 
try  people    "pojmle,"  a  corruption    of   poplar.      It 


124       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

seems  to  me  that  a  more  significant  and  proper  name 
would  be  trembling  aspen,  for  its  leaves  flutter 
with  the  slightest  zephyr.  The  tree  may  be  easily 
identified  by  the  trembling  of  its  leaves  and  the 
whitish-green  color  of  its  trunk.  It  is  never  very 
large,  and  although  in  northern  Kentucky  it  may 
attain  a  height  of  45  feet,  in  other  parts  of  the  coun- 
try it  does  not  often  exceed  25  feet.  The  flat,  white- 
veined,  heart-shaped  leaf,  of  a  leathery  texture  and 
dull,  pale-green  color,  spreads  out  on  a  plane  at  right 
angles  with  a  singularly  flattened  long  stem,  so  limber 
that  it  allows  the  leaf  to  wiggle  with  the  slightest  stir 
of  air.  If  a  small  spray  or  branch  of  the  tree  is  held 
in  the  hand  before  the  mouth  and  one  blows  gently 
on  the  leaves,  it  will  be  seen  at  once  how  and  why 
they  tremble  in  every  passing  breeze ;  the  swaying 
motion  is  exactly  like  that  of  a  bit  of  writing  paper 
allowed  to  fall  through  the  air.  The  Lombardy 
poplar  leaf  also  has  a  long,  flat  stem,  and  it  sways  in 
the  same  way. 

The  aspen  is  sometimes  mistaken  for  the  gray  or 
white  birch,  because  both  trees  have  a  whitish  trunk, 
spare  horizontal  lower  and  oblique  upper  limbs,  and 
both  are  similar  in  figure  ;  but  the  leaves  of  these  two 
trees  are  entirely  different :  the  birch  has  an  exceed- 
ingly brilliant  light-green  foliage,  which  reflects  the 
sunlight  and  quite  often  dazzles  the  eye,  while  the 


Tin:  Poplars.  125 

aspen  has  a  whitish  foliage  without  a  suspicioD  of 
shininess.  Along  the  banks  of  the  Pemierewasset 
Kiver,  and  in  tlie  adjacent  woodlands,  this  tree,  with 
its  ever-trembling  leaves,  is  a  very  familiar  object. 
Its  smooth,  greenish  trunk  is  cut  by  the  lumbernu  0 
into  short,  round  logs,  which  are  sent  to  neighbor- 
ing mills  and  ground  by  powerful  machinery,  with 
the  aid  of  water,  into  a  soft  pulp ;  this  is  pressed 
into  paste-boardlike  layers,  in  which  preparatory 
condition  it  is  sent  to  various  factories  for  the  man- 
ufacture not  only  of  paper  but  of  an  infinite  variety 
of  useful  objects,  such  as  pails,  stove-mats,  wash- 
tubs,  boxes,  trays,  etc. 
_  ._   _  The  large-toothed  aspen  has  a  larger 

Large-toothed  °  l 

Aspen,     and    coarser   leaf   than   that   of   the 

Popiihi*  variety  just  described,  and  its  outline 

grandidentata.     .  , 

is  roundish  and  irregularly  wavy. 
There  are,  perhaps,  only  seventeen  coarse  teeth  to 
each  leaf,  and  these  are  very  dull-pointed.  The  leaf 
stems  are  also  flat  and  long ;  in  fact,  the  large-toothed 
aspen  has  leaves  of  nearly  the  same  character  as  those 
of  its  more  beautiful  relative,  but  lacking  the  pretty 
heart-shape.  The  leaf  is  large,  however,  from  three 
to  five  inches  long,  smooth  on  both  sides  when  old,  but 
covered  with  down  when  quite  young.  The  twv  is 
common  in  the  North,  but  rare  southward,  except  in 
the  Alleghanies.     It  grows  from  b>  to  s<>  feet  high, 


126       FAMILIAR   TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


Large-toothed  Aspen. 


lias  greenish-gray,  smooth  hark,  and  soft,  white  wood, 
which  is  also  ground  into  pulp  and  used  extensively 
in  the  manufacture  of  paper,  etc. 


THE   POPLARS. 


L2' 


Downy  Poplar.      Tne  downy  poplar  is  distinguished 

Popuius  by   its   leaves,    which,  downy    when 

1  J         young  and  becoming  smooth  on  both 

sides  when  older,  still  retain  the  down  on  the  veins 

l><  neatli.     The  leaf 


is      also       quite 
blunt  at  the  end, 
never  tapering  to  a 
point,  and  the  teeth 
are  obtuse,  with  an  in- 
ward   curve.      The    tree 
grows   from  40  to  80   feet 
high,  and  is  rather  rare.     It 
will  be  found  on  the  borders  of  swamps 
from  Connecticut  to  southern   Illinois 
and  southward. 
The  cottonwood,  or  Carolina  poplar, 
is  a  very  large  tree  of  rapid  growth, 


Downy  Poplar. 


Cottonwood. 
Carolina  Poplar. 

Popuius  monilifera 

Popuius  deitoidea.  varying  from  60  to  150  feet  in  height. 
In  the  Mississippi  Yalley  and  immediately  west  it 
borders  every  stream.  It  can  also  be  found,  but  not  in 
great  plenty,  from  western  New  England  to  Florida. 
The  leaf  is  similar  in  character  to  those  of  the  poplars 
already  described,  except  that  it  is  quite  smooth,  glossy, 
nearly  as  wide  as  it  is  long,  and  sometimes  has  in- 
curved, slightly  hairy  teeth;  this  last  is  hardly  a  very 
common  characteristic,  but  it  is  observable  in  many 


128       FAMILIAR   TREES  AND   THEIR   LEAVES. 


instances.     The   rapidly  growing  young  twigs   bear 
leaves   which   sometimes   measure    eight    inches    in 

length.       However,    it 
must  not  be  forgotten 
that  the  seedlings  and 
young    shoots   of    all 
trees  frequently  pro- 
duce    leaves     of     an 
abnormal   size,   if     we 
take  the  leaf  of  an  old 
tree  as  a  standard. 
Balsam  Poplar.        The   leaf   of   the  balsam 
acama  ac.  p0piarj  or  tacamahac,  is  a 

Populus 

bahamifera,     great    remove    from    its 
Populus  suaveohns.   trembling    relative.       It 

hardly  resembles  it  in  any  particular,  if 
I  except  the  white  back.  Above,  the 
color  is  a  somewhat  yellowish  green  ;  be- 
low, it  is  whitish,  like  that  of  all  other  poplar  leaves. 
The  outline  is  distinctly  egg-shaped,  but  pointed, 
and  is  finely  but  obtusely  toothed.  Prof.  Bailey 
speaks  of  this  tree  as  the  most  variable  of  all  the 
poplars  cultivated  in  this  country.  He  says  it  is  rep- 
resented by  three  marked  varieties,  "  differing  from 
the  species  and  from  each  other  in  the  habit  of  growth, 
shape  and  color  of  leaves,  and  character  of  twigs."  The 
tree  grows  from  40  to  70  feet  high,  has  a  pyramidal 


Cottonwood. 


THE   POPLARS. 


L29 


figure,  and   is   found  in  the  woods  and   beside  the 
streams  in  the  Northern  States.    Its  leaf  is  thick,  linn, 
and  borne  erect  on  the  twigs;  and  the  large,  brown- 
yellow  leaf  buds  are  covered  in  spring  with 
a  fragrant  resinous  coating.     I 
drawn  for   comparison  the  lea^ 
the  three  varieties  which    •<?*, 
are — var.  intermedia,  var. 
mminalis  {P.  la/wr (folia, 
Sarg.),  and  var.  latifolia. 

Balm      of 


Balm  of  Gilead. 


Populus 
balsamifera, 
var.  candicans 


Gilead     may 

at    once    be    reco< 

nized  by  its  fra- 
grant resinous  leaf  buds  ;  these 
are  especially  odorous  in  spring- 
time.     It    is   purely  a  matter   of        "   Populus  balsamifera. 

taste  if  one  considers  the  buds  fragrant;  but  de 
gustibus  no?i  est  dixjn/tcntd/im.  In  my  own  opinion, 
the  smell  is  unpleasantly  suggestive  of  the  "great 
unclean,"  or  rather  the  mildly  unclean,  who  use  per- 
fumery, resulting  in  a  mixture  which  can  not  de- 
ceive! Guessing  at  an  analysis  of  the  perfume  in  a 
leaf  bud,  I  should  define  it  thus  :  equal  parts  of  sandal  - 
wood,  patchouli,  and  barber  shop  to  one  part  of  i 
sence  of  boiled  onions.  The  bit  of  balm  of  Gilead  I 
had  in  my  hands  last  September  smelled  just  that  way. 

10 


130       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   TIIEIR  LEAVES. 


The  leaves  are  large  and  beautiful,  perfectly  heart- 
shaped,  green,  of  a  light-olive  tone  above  and  whitish 
(sometimes  rusty)  beneath;  their  stems  are  an  inch 


P.  Balsamifera,  var. 
Intermedia. 


P.  Balsamifera,  var. 
Viminalis. 


P.  Balsamifera, 
var.  latifolia. 


and  a  quarter  long,  a  trifle  hairy,  and  a  little  bit 
flattened ;  sometimes  they  are  touched  with  red. 
The  bark  of  the  twigs  is  raw-umber  brown  in  color ; 
that  of  the  trunk  is  about  the  same,  with  darker 
patches.  The  tree  is  exceedingly  rare  in  a  wild  state, 
but  is  very  common  in  cultivation.  It  was  planted  on 
the  borders  of  the  lagoon  at  the  World's  Fair,  where 
its  rich,  broad  foliage  showed  in  handsome,  irregularly 
rounded  masses.  The  tree  in  this  respect  is  quite  dif- 
ferent from  the  other  poplars,  which  exhibit  rather 
pyramidal  figures. 

Perhaps  the   most  beautiful  of  these  taller  and 


TIIK   POPLARS. 


131 


slenderer   trees   is   the   Lombardy   poplar   (Populus 
nigra,  var.  Italica ;  also  Populus  dUatata),   which 


Balm  of  Gilead. 


ascends  like  a  church  spire  some  100  feet  or  more  to 
the  sky.  It  has  a  pretty,  triangularly  shaped  leaf, 
with  a  flattish  stem,  often  red,  and  a  smooth,  thin, 
leathery  texture ;  the  teeth  are  not  sharp ;  the  color 


132       FAMILIAR   TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


Lombardy  Poplar. 


TITE   POPLARS.  [33 

above  is  a  deep,  clear  green  ;  that  beneath  is  a  little 
lighter.  The  trunk  of  this  tree  is  almost  completely 
covered  from  the  ground  upward  with  suckerlike 
straight  branches;  these  have  a  lightish  gray-green 
bark.  The  Lombardy  poplar,  one  of  the  most  pic- 
turesque of  objects  in  a  hilly  landscape,  is  unfortu- 
nately ill  adapted  to  the  severity  of  our  Northern 
climate.  In  the  Pemigewasset  Yalley  I  know  of 
three  line  specimens  which  are  gradually  losing  their 
tall  figures  through  the  bitter  cold  of  the  New  Hamp- 
shire winters ;  the  tops  are  slowly  taking  on  the  ap- 
pearance of  so  much  perpendicular  brushwood  bare 
of  every  leaf. 


CHAPTER  X. 


I.  Simple  Alternate  Leaves. 

2.  With  teeth.  B.  Edge  divided 

THE  HAWTHORNS. 

The  hawthorns,  or  white  thorns,  as  they  are  some- 
times called,  are  commonest  in  the  South ;  but  many 
varieties  may  be  found  in  the  North,  where  they 
can  always  be  distinguished  from  other  trees,  at  all 
seasons  of  the  year,  by  their  thorns. 

Washington  Thorn.  The      Wash- 
Cratiigui  cordata.    mgt0n  thorn 

is     a     tree     which 

grows  not   over 

30      feet       in 

height,   greatly 

esteemed     for     its 


Washington  Thorn. 


beautiful    flowers     and 
bright-red  berries.    The 
leaf  is  a  deep,  lustrous  green  in  summer,  and  turns 
late  in  the  fall  a  rich  orange-red.     The  flowers  ap- 
pear  about  the  last  of   May ;   they  are   white,   and 

134 


THE    HAWTHORNS.  135 

clustered  like  cherry  blossoms,  but  in  miniature. 
The  berries  are  not  much  larger  than  peas ;  they 
are  bright  red,  and  ripen  in  Sep- 
tember; many  of  them  cling  to  the 
boughs  throughout  the  winter,  but 
eventually  become  brown  and  sere. 
The  Washington  thorn  is  hardly 
common,  but  is  found  generally  scat- 
tered  through    the    South  from  the 

,.  -      ,,  -p,  -r,.  English  Hawthorn. 

valley  of  the  1  otomac  luver  to 
northern  Georgia  and  Alabama,  and  from  Tennessee 
and  Kentucky  to  the  valley  of  the  lower  Wabash 
River  in  Illinois.*  It  is  hardy  northward  to  south- 
ern Xew  England,  where  it  flowers  later  than  any 
of  the  other  thorns.  It  is  a  favorite  among  gar- 
deners for  hedges,  and  it  has  long  since  found  its 
way  into  European  gardens.  It  does  not  quite  equal 
the  English  hawthorn  (Cratcegus  oxyaca?it7ia\-f.  how  - 
ever,  for  this  species  has  a  most  charming  pink  (some- 
times white)  flower,  which  has  been  sung  by  all  the 
English  poets. 

There  is  a  narrow-leaved  thorn  (Cratcvgus  spathu- 
lata\  closely  related  to  the  Washington  thorn,  which 

*  It  has  also  found  its  way  into  Bucks  County,  Pa. 

f  There  are  several  large,  handsome  English  hawthorns  in  the 
Public  Garden,  Boston,  some  of  which  are  double-flowered.  This 
species  is  occasionally  found  in  Bucks  County,  Pa.,  running  wild. 


136       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


has  a  similar  fruit,  and  a  singularly  long,  dark-green 

leaf,  thick,  and  almost  evergreen.     This  tree  or  shrub 

grows  sometimes  20  feet  high,  and  is  found  (it  is  not 

very  common)  from  Virginia  southward. 

It  flowers  in  May. 

Tall  Hawthorn.     The  tall  hawthorn  is  a 

Crataegus  viridis.     Southern  tree,  20  to  35 

feet  high,  whose  leaf  is  most  frequently 
undivided,  and  rather  pointed  at  each 
end.  Its  bright-red  fruit  is  ovoid,  and 
not  over  a  quarter  of  an  inch  broad. 
The  branches  bear  a  few  large  thorns  or 
none  at  all.  This  variety  is  rare  in  the 
extreme  Southeastern  States,  but  is  com- 
mon west  of  the  Mississippi  River,  from 

St.  Louis  southward  to  the  Colorado   River,   Texas. 

It  grows  beside  streams  or  in  low,  rich  soil. 

Parsley-leaved  The  parsley -leaved  thorn  has  a  beau- 

Thorn,    tiful,  deeply  cut  leaf, 

Crataegus  apiifoUa.     gomewliat   gimilar  to 

that  of  the  English  hawthorn ;  the 
divisions  are  irregularly  toothed  and 
crowded  together.  The  flowers  ap- 
pear in  late  May ;  they  are  white, 
about  half  an  inch  in  diameter,  and 
there  are  many  in  a  cluster.  The  fruit  is  rather 
long  ovoid  in  shape  and  less  than  half  an  inch  in 


Tall  Hawthorn. 


Parsley -leaved 
Thorn. 


THE    HAWTHORNS. 


137 


length  ;  it  is  coral -red,  and  ripens  in  September.  The 
tree  grows  from  10  to  20  feet  high,  and  lias  ]<>iiLr 
spreading  branches.  It  may  be  found  in  moist  woods 
or  in  rich  ground  from  southern  Virginia  southward 
to  Florida,  and  westward  to  Arkansas  and  Texa6. 


The       white 


White  or 

Scarlet-fruited 

Thorn'  times    called 


thorn,  some- 


Cratcegus 

coccinea. 


scarlet-fruit- 
ed thorn,   is 
a  small  tree 


White  Thorn. 


(often  a  shrub),  scarcely  over  25  feet  high,  which  may 
be  found  in  woods  or  on  the  borders  of  fields  through- 
out the  North;  it  is  rather  rare  southward,  although 


138       FAMILIAR   TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

it  extends  to  Florida.  The  fruit  is  dull  orange-red, 
and  resembles  a  very  diminutive  crab  apple  ;  it  is 
ripe  in  September.  The  flowers  grow  in  clusters 
similar  to  those  of  the  English  hawthorn,  and  meas- 
ure about  two  thirds  of  an  inch  across ;  they  are 
white,  and  very  often  pink-tinged.  The  leaf  is  ex- 
tremely ornamental — conventionally  regular  in  char- 
acter as  well  as  appearance  with  its  deep  -  green, 
smooth,  and  shiny  surface.  The  branchlets  are  more 
or  less  covered  with  thorns  about  an  inch  long.  The 
white  thorn  is  well  worthy  of  cultivation,  as  early 
and  late,  in  flower  or  fruit,  it  is  both  beautiful  and 
decorative. 

Scarlet  Haw.  The  scarlet  haw,  which  formerly  was 
Cratcegm  mollis,  confused  with  the  preceding  variety, 
is  marked  with  pronounced  differences.  The  fruit  is 
much  larger  (an  inch  to  an  inch  and  a  quarter  in  diam- 
eter) ;  it  is  sweet  and  edible,  and  falls  in  September. 
The  leaf  divisions  are  less  sharply  pointed,  and  the 
leaf  itself  is  lighter  green  and  much  larger.  This 
thorn  also  flowers  early — when  the  leaves  are  half 
grown,  in  the  middle  or  end  of  May.  The  mature 
leaf  measures  from  three  to  five  inches  in  length,  and 
is  often  densely  cottony  below. 

The  scarlet  haw  grows  on  the  margins  of  swamps 
and  along  streams,  in  rich  soil,  from  Massachusetts 
Bay  to  Michigan  and  Missouri,  and  from  the  middle 


THE   HAWTHORNS. 


139 


of  Tennessee  to  Texas.  In  New  England  it  looks 
more  treelike,  and  attains  a  larger  size  than  the  other 
American  thorns.* 

Blackthorn.        The    blackthorn    has    smaller    fruit 

Crataegus  tomentosa.    (]ia]f    an    inch    long),  OVoid    ill    shape 

and  dull-red  in  color.  The  leaves  have  a  very  doubt- 
fully divided  outline — that  is,  some  of 
them  are  so  slightly  incised  that  the 
can  hardly  be  called  divided.  They 
are  light  olive-green,  and  turn  dull 
orange-red  in  the  autumn.  The 
flowers  are  very  ill-scented,  and 
appear  two  or  three  weeks  later 
than  those  of  the  foregoing  va- 
riety. This  thorn  grows  from  10 
to  20  feet  high,  and  is  distributed  from  eastern  New 
York  westward  to  Michigan  and  Missouri,  and  south- 
westward  to  Georgia,  Tennessee,  and  eastern  Texas. 
It  is  not  very  common. 

Dotted-fruited  The  dotted-fruited  thorn  has  a  small 

Thorn.     ]eaf  (perhaps  an  inch  and  three  quar- 

Cratiet/ us  punctata.  i  \        i  •   i      •  t    •  i     i     i 

r  ters  long)  which  is  not  divided,  but 

is  irregularly  toothed ;  it  is  pale,  dull  green.  The 
fruit  is  an  inch  in  diameter,  round,  more  or  less  white 
dotted,  and  generally  red,  but  often  deep  yellow.    This 


Blackthorn. 


Vide  Silva  of  North  America,  C.  S.  Sargent. 


140       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   TIIEIR  LEAVES. 


Dotted-fruite 
Thorn. 


tree  grows  less  than  30  feet  high,  and  is  common 
throughout  the  North ;  it  extends  southward  to 
Georgia.  Its  branches  are  always  hori- 
zontal. 

Cockspur  Thorn.     Tlie  cockspur 

Crataegus  thorn       is        a 

Crus-qalli. 

variety  most 
frequently  favored  by  culti- 
vation ;  it  is  very  common- 
ly used  for  hedges.  The 
thorns  measure  two  or  three  inches  in  length.  The 
leaves  are  not  divided,  and  are  toothed  only  above 
the  middle ;  they  are  dark  green  and  shiny  above,  but 
pale  below ;  in  autumn  they  turn  a  dull 
orange-red.  The  flowers,  which  bloom 
as  late  as  the  middle  of  June,  are 
white,  and  somewhat  fragrant.  The 
fruit  is  similar  to  that  of  the  scarlet- 
fruited  thorn,  but  rather  more  pear- 
shaped  (very  slightly  so) ;  it  also 
ripens  about  the  same  time,  and 
remains  on  the  tree  all  winter. 
The  cockspur  thorn  is  found  on  the 
margins  of  swamps,  or  in  rich  soil,  throughout  the 
North  ;  it  extends  southward  to  Florida  and  west- 
ward to  Missouri  and  Texas ;  it  is  most  abundant  and 
reaches  its  largest  size  in  Arkansas  and  Louisiana. 


Cockspur 
Thorn. 


II  IK    HAWTHORNS. 


141 


Yellow  or  Summer     The     Yellow     or     summer    haw    is    B 

Haw.  Southern  variety  of   the   thmn    which 

Crataegus  flwua.       ^^   not   oyer   2Q    f(,r(    ^^  and    fc 

esteemed  for  its  fruit,  which  is  edible  and 
pleasant  flavored  ;  it  is  yellow,  tinged  with 
red,  generally  pear-shaped,  but  frequently 
round.      The   leaf  is  somewhat   wedge- 
shaped,  but  variable.     This  thorn  extends 
through  the  South  from  Virginia  to  Mis- 
souri. 

Southern  Summer     The      Southern      summer   Yellow  or  Sum- 


Haw. 


haw  is  a  Southern  thorn 


mer  Haw. 


which 


grows    not   higher    than    30 


Summer  Southern  Haw.  Summer  Southern  Haw,  with  larger  fruit. 

feet,    and   bears    fragrant,    edible    fruit,    bright    red, 
somewhat  dotted,  and  about  two  thirds  of  an  inch  in 


142       FAMILIAR   TREES   AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 

diameter.  This  is  gathered  in  quantities  where  the 
tree  is  common,  and  sold  in  the  markets  of  the  towns 
in  southwestern  Louisiana.  It  is  made  into  preserves 
and  jelly.  The  leaf  is  somewhat  wedge-shaped,  leath- 
ery, and  toothed  above  the  middle.  The  summer 
haw  grows  from  the  valley  of  the  Savannah  River, 
South  Carolina,  to  northern  Florida  ;  it  extends 
westward  to  Texas.  This  tree  bears  the  largest 
flowers  and  the  best-flavored  fruit  of  all  the  thorns. 


CHAPTER  XL 

I.  Simple  Alternate  Leaves. 
2.  With  teeth  (some  without).  B.  Edge  divided. 

THE  OAKS   WITH  ACORNS   WHICH  RIPEN 

IN  ONE   YEAR. 

There  are  so  many  oaks,  and  there  is  sucli  an  in- 
finite  variety  to  the  shape  of  their  leaves,  that  it  is 
best  for  us  to  learn  the  exact  location  *  of  each  spe- 
cies, and  carefully  note  the  differences  which  exist 
between  their  acorns,  bark,  wood,  etc.  I  have  there- 
fore placed  the  oaks  in  regular  botanical  order.  First 
come  the  white  oaks,  chestnut  oaks,  and  the  ever- 
green-leaved live  oak,  all  of  which  bear  acorns  which 
ripen  within  the  year;  next  the  black  and  red  oaks, 
whose  acorns  take  two  years  in  which  to  mature  ;  and 
finally,  the  leather-leaved  oaks,  some  of  which  are 
almost  or  quite  evergreen  in  the  South;  these  also 
take  two  years  in  which  to  ripen  their  acorns.     It 

*  I  am  indebted  to  Prof.  C.  S.  Sargent  in  many  instances  for 
the  precise  localities  of  certain  species. 

143 


144       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR   LEAVES. 

will  certainly  be  quite  an  easy  task  to  identify  a  tree 
by  its  leaf,  acorn,  and  bark,  as  they  are  described  or 
drawn  here,  without  the  aid  of  a  method  of  arrange- 
ment different  from  that  which  will  be  found  in 
Gray's  Field,  Forest,  and  Garden  Botany.  Of  course, 
the  acorn  is  a  "  telltale  "  of  the  oak ;  but  in  case  it 
should  not  be  conveniently  present,  or  we  should  fail 
in  recognizing  it,  there  are  other  equally  reliable 
means  which  I  have  pointed  out  of  identifying  a  tree. 
But  we  must  bear  in  mind  that  the  certain  recogni- 
tion of  a  particular  species  by  means  of  its  leaf  is 
rendered  somewhat  difficult  at  times  by  variations. 
Little  seedlings  are  especially  troublesome  in  this  re- 
spect, so  one's  attention  should  be  turned  to  the  larger 
trees. 

White  Oak.  The  white  oak  grows  from  TO  to  100 
Quercus  alba.  feet?  and  in  the  forest  150  feet  high, 
if  it  is  crowded  away  from  the  sunlight ;  but  in  the 
open,  where  it  reaches  its  fullest  development,  it  sends 
out  great,  wide-spreading  branches,  and  attains  a  very 
moderate  height,  with  rather  a  domelike  figure.  The 
leaves  are  round-lobed,  narrow  at  the  base,  smooth, 
deep  bright  green  above  and  pale  green  below ;  when 
very  young  they  are  woolly  and  red  ;  in  the  fall  they 
turn  a  rich  dark  red,  and  many  of  them  remain  on 
the  branches  through  the  whiter.  The  rough-cu-p-ped 
(not  scaly-cupped)  acorn  is  generally  borne  in  pairs, 


THK   OAKS    WITH   ACORNS. 


145 


White  Oak. 


sometimes  on  a  short  but  usually  on  a  long  stem.    The 

brown  nut  is  sweet  and  edible. 

The  bark  of  the  trunk  is  usually  gray,  tinged  with 
11 


14G       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


brown ;  it  is  not  very  rough,  and  in  old  trees  it  is  apt 
to  become  detached  in  laro;e,  thin  scales. 

The  white  oak  is  equally  beautiful  in  spring,  sum- 
mer, and  autumn ;  it  begins  and  ends  with  rich  red 
foliage,  and  in  midsummer  it  is  clothed  in  luxuriant 
green.  Its  hard,  tough  wood  is  largely  exported  to 
Euroj^e,  and  it  is  used  in  the  manufacture  of  carriages, 
a  variety  of  useful  articles,  and  for  the  interior  finish 
of  buildings.  The  tree  grows  from  Maine  to  Minne- 
sota and  southward ;  it  reaches  its  highest  develop- 
ment on  the  west  slopes  of  the  Alleghany  Mountains, 
in  Tennessee  and  the  Carolinas,  and  in  the  bottom 
lands  of  the  lower  Ohio  basin.  It  is  rarely  found  in 
northern  New  England,  but  farther  south  it  is  quite 

plentiful.     At  Middle- 
ton,  Mass.,  there  is  a 
fine  tree  over  80  feet 
high,    and   a   certain 
aged  specimen  in  the 
village  of  South  See- 
konk,    Mass.,   is    be- 
lieved to  be  six  hun- 
dred years  old. 

Post  or  Iron  Oak.    Tne  Post  or 

Post  Oak.  Quercus  stellata.       iron  Oak 

Quercus  minor.  £ 

grows   irom 
50  to  60  feet  and  rarely  100  feet  high  in  the  for- 


■ 


•^»     — • 


A* 


WHITE  OAK. 

Waverly,  A^iddlesex  Co.,  Mass. 


TIIE   OAKS    WITH    A  CORNS.  147 

ests.  The  bark  of  the  trunk  resembles  that  of  the 
white  oak;  it  is  a  trifle  darker.  The  dark-green 
leaves  are  roughened  above  and  below  with  little 
hairs;  their  "under  side  is  a  trifle  grayish;  in  autumn 
they  turn  a  dull  yellow  or  light  brown.  The  lobes 
of  the  leaves  are  rounded  and  sprawling,  their  haM-- 
frequently  wedge-shaped.  The  acorn  is  small,  and 
has  a  short  stem,  on  which  it  usually  grows  in  pairs 
(sometimes  in  threes) ;  the  cup-shaped  cup  incases  at 
least  one  third  of  the  nut. 

The  post  oak  is  found  from  the  eastern  extremity 
of  Cape  Cod,  along  the  southern  coast  of  Massachu- 
setts, Rhode  Island,  and  Long  Island,  N.  Y.,  to 
northern  Florida;  it  is  also  common  in  the  dry  soil 
of  Martha's  Vineyard,  where  its  growth  is  shrublike, 
with  crooked  stems.  It  extends  south  westward  to 
Texas,  and  has  its  best  growth  in  the  dry  uplands  of 
the  Mississippi  basin.  Its  hard,  durable  wood  is  used 
in  making  carriages,  and  other  useful  articles  which 
require  strength  of  construction.  In  the  distance  it 
is  easy  to  recognize  the  post  oak  because  of  its  ex- 
tremely dark -green  foliage. 

The  burr  or  over-cup  oak  has  an  ex 
Burr  or  Over-cup  L 

Oak.  tremely  long,  deeply  lobed  (near  the 

Querent  middle)  leaf,  smooth  above  and   pale 

green  and  downy  below.      1  bis  is  one 
of  the  largest  of  the  oaks  on  the  eastern  side  of  the 


148       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


Mississippi  River.     It  grows  under  favorable  circum- 
stances from  150  to  170  feet  high  ;  its  average  height, 

however,  is  not  much  over  75  feet. 
In  the  open  it  develops  a 
broad,  round  head  and 
wide  -  spreading  branches. 
The  bark  of  the  trunk  is 
deeply  furrowed,  and  fre- 
quently broken  into  plate- 
like, light-brown  scales ;  that 
of  the  young  branches  is 
dark  brown,  marked  with 
corky  ridges  or  wings.  The 
new  leaves  are  a  tender 
yellow  green,  and  the 
thicker  mature  ones  deep 
green  and  shiny ;  beneath,  the  color  is  lighter ;  in 
autumn  they  turn  dull  yellow  or  yellow  brown.  A 
mature  leaf  will  measure  from  six  to  twelve  inches 
in  length.  The  acorn  of  this  oak  is  distinguished  by 
the  heavy  fringing  around  the  nut  at  the  edge  of 
the  cup ;  the  cup  itself  is  extremely  rough.  The 
acorns  usually  grow  solitary,  and  vary  in  size  and 
shape. 

The  burr  oak  is  found  in  the  Penobscot  River 
Valley,  Me.,  along  the  shore  of  Lake  Champlain,  Vt., 
and  in  the  valley  of  the  Ware  River,  Mass. ;  it  is  also 


Over 


TIIE   OAKS   WITH   ACORNS.  \\\i 

in  Bucks  and  Lancaster  Counties,  Pa., and  extends  west- 
ward to  Montana  and  Indian  Territory.  The  exten- 
sive "oak  openings"  in  the  prairies  arc  mostly  formed 
of  the  burr  oak;  and  Dr.  P.  R.  Hoy,  of  the  Phila- 
delphia Academy  of  Natural  Sciences,  speaks  of  it  as 
a  Western  oak,  which  can  not  be  excelled  in  graceful 
beauty  when  it  is  not  crowded  in  growth,  but  left  free 
to  follow  the  law  of  its  development.  The  changing 
colors  of  the  loriff  leaf  as  it  is  agitated 
by  the  wind  give  the  tree  a  sin- 
gularly beautiful  appearance 
in  summer  ;  in  winter  it 
may  readily  be  identified  by 
its  curiously  winged 
branchlets.  The  tree 
is  most  abundant  and 
reaches  its  finest  develop 
ment  in  the  Mississippi  basin 
and  Indiana  and  Illinois.  Its  wood 
is  superior  in  strength  to  that  of  the 
other  oaks. 

Southern  Over-cup  Oak.  The  Southern  over- 
Quercus  lyrata.         cup  oak  is  a   large 
tree  growing  70  to  80  and  sometimes 
100  feet  high,  which  inhabits  the  river  Southern  Over-cup 

*    !  Oak. 

swamps  of  North  Carolina  and  south- 
ern Indiana,  and  extends  along  the  coast  from  south- 


150      FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 

ern  Maryland  to  western  Florida,  through  the  Giilf 
States  to  Texas,  and  westward  to  Missouri  and  Ar- 
kansas. According  to  Prof.  Sargent,  it  is  rare  in  all 
the  States,  but  reaches  its  commonest  and  largest 
growth  in  the  Red  Eiver  Yalley,  La.,  and  the  adja- 
cent country  of  Arkansas  and  Texas.  The  leaves 
are  of  a  reddish-copper  color  when  young,  and  deep 
green  when  mature,  with  a  silvery  downiness  be- 
neath ;  they  are  crowded  at  the  ends  of  the  branch- 
lets  ;  few  of  them  are  over  seven  inches  in  length ; 
they  turn  dull  orange-red  in  the  fall.  The  leaf  lobes 
are  somewhat  acute.  The  acorn  has  a  roundish  cup 
with  very  rough  scales,  which  nearly  covers  the  glob- 
ular nut.  The  four  species  just  described  complete 
the  list  of  common  white  oaks. 

,w  ..    r.  ,     The  swamp  white  oak  belongs  to  the 
Swamp  White  Oak.  x  & 

Quercus  bkoior.     group  of  chestnut   oaks,*  the  other 
Quercus xdatanoides.  three  members  of  which  immediately 

follow.  Its  leaf  has  a  wavy  edge  which  is  not  deep- 
ly cut ;  it  is  shiny  green  above,  and  silvery- white, 
downy  below.  In  autumn  it  finally  turns  a  yellow 
brownish-buff  color.  The  acorn  usually  grows  on  a 
long  stem  (frequently  in  pairs),  and  has  a  rough, 
rounded  cup,  with  a  bristling  if  not  a  fringed  edge. 
The  nut  is  sweet  and  edible. 

*  The  leaves  closely  resemble  those  of  the  chestnut. 


THE   OAKS  WITII   ACORXS. 


151 


This  oak  is  commonly  found  on  the  borders  of 
streams  and  swamps  ;  it  rarely  attains  a  height  of  over 


Swamp  White  Oak. 


70  feet.     In  western  New  York  and  northern  Ohio  it 
reaches  its  finest  development.    It  is  distributed  over 


152       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

the  country  from  southern  Maine  to  Iowa  and  Mis- 
souri, and  along  the  Alleghany  Mountains  to  Georgia. 
The  young,  flaky  bark,  and  small,  crooked  branchlets 
which  are  apt  to  hang  from  the  heavy  limbs  of  the 
swamp  white  oak,  make  the  identification  of  the  tree 
easy  at  all  seasons. 

There  is  a  small  but  symmetrical  swamp  white 
oak  near  one  of  the  little  £)onds  in  the  Arnold  Ar- 
boretum, which  is  somewhat  isolated  and  pictur- 
esquely defined  in  the  landscape  over  against  the 
north.  One  of  the  largest  specimens  of  which  a 
record  has  been  preserved  grew  on  the  Wadsworth 
estate,  one  mile  from  the  village  of  Geneseo,  in  the 
western  part  of  New  York.  The  "  Wadsworth  oak," 
as  this  tree  was  called,  met  with  destruction  several 
years  ago  by  the  washing  away  of  the  bank  of  the 
Genesee  Kiver.  In  1851  the  short  trunk  had  an 
average  circumference  of  twenty-seven  feet.*  There 
is  also  a  very  beautiful  tree,  65  feet  high,  on  the  edge 
of  the  water  south  of  a  kame,  in  Waverly,  Mass. 
Basket  or  Cow  Oak.  The  basket  or  cow  oak,  another  of 
q mr ens  Michauxii.  -Qie  chestnut  oaks,  gets  its  name  from 
the  fact  that  its  wood,  which  is  easily  sj^lit  into  thin 
strips,  is  largely  used  for  making  baskets.  It  is  a  tree 
which  not  infrequently  attains  a  height  of  100  feet. 

*  Some  Large  Trees  in  Western  New  York,  Buckley,  American 
Journal  of  Science,  vol.  xiii,  p.  397. 


THE  OAKS   WITH   ACORNS. 


153 


The  leaf  is  similar  in  shape  and  character  to  that 

of  the  foregoing  species,  but  it  is  extremely  woolly 
beneath.     It  is  also  blunt  (iwt  wedge-shaped) 
at  the  base.      In  autumn  it  turns  a  rich 
dark-red    color.       The    acorn    grows 
solitary  or   in    pairs,    and    has    a 
very  rough,  shallow  cup,  and 
a  sweet,  edible  nut. 

This  tree  is  one  of  the 
most  valuable  and  beautiful 
of  the  chestnut  oaks.  It  is 
easily  identified  by  its  flaky, 
silvery -gray  bark,  and  its 
tall,  massive  trunk.  It 
grows  hi  swamps  and  beside 
streams,  from  Wilmington, 
Del.,  southward  to  north- 
ern Florida,  and 
extends  from  In- 
diana and  Missouri 
southward  to  Texas 
and  the  Gulf. 
The  chestnut  oak  grows  from  60  to 
70  and  occasionally  Ion  feet  high, 
and  has  leaves  which  somewhat  resemble  those  of  the 
chestnut  tree.  They  are  orange-green  when  young, 
and  decidedly  yellow-green   when    mature.     In    tin- 


Basket  Oak 


Chestnut  Oak. 
Qui  reus  Prinus, 


154       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

autumn  they  turn  a  lovely  warm  buff-yellow,  with 
occasional  touches  of  pale  scarlet.  They  are  mi- 
nutely downy  beneath,  but  very  smooth  above. 


Chestnut  Oak. 

The  chestnut  oak  is  generally  found  on  hillsides 
and  on  high  banks  of  streams.  It  is  very  common 
along  the  lower  banks  of  the  Hudson  River  and  in 
the  vicinity  of  New  York  city.  It  extends  generally 
from  the  southern  coast  of  Maine  to  Delaware  and 


THE  OAKS  WITH   ACORNS.  155 

the  District  of  Columbia,  and  follows  the  Alleghany 
Mountains  as  far  south  as  Alabama.  It  attains  its 
finest  development  in  the  mountains  of  North  Caro- 
lina and  Tennessee.  In  the  North  it  may  also  he 
found  on  the  west  shore  of  Lake  Champlain,  in  tin' 
valley  of  the  Genesee  River,  N.  Y.,  and  on  the 
shores  of  Lake  Erie ;  from  here  it  extends  south- 
ward to  Tennessee. 

I  do  not  find  the  chestnut  oak  at  all  common  in 
New  Hampshire.  In  the  valley  of  the  Pemigewasset 
River  it  is  entirely  absent ;  but  in  the  village  of  Bed- 
ford, in  the  southern  part  of  the  State,  there  is  a  large 
specimen  near  the  house  of  Mr.  S.  Manning  which  is 
remarkably  beautiful. 

A  large  and  famous  tree  is  now  standing  at 
Presqu'ile,  near  Fishkill-on-the-IIudson,  under  which, 
it  is  said,  Washington  in  1783  used  to  mount  his  horse 
when  he  went  from  his  headcpiarters  on  the  west  bank 
of  the  river  to  the  army  encampment  at  Fishkill.  The 
diameter  of  its  trunk  is  fully  seven  feet,  and  a  hun- 
dred years  ago  it  was  famous  for  its  age.* 

The  bark  of  the  chestnut  oak  is  particularly  rich 
in  tannin,  and  is  much  used  in  the  tanning  of  leather. 
The  tree  is  one  of  the  most  beautiful  of  all  the  oaks. 
Its   rich,  warm,  green  foliage   marks  the  landscape 

*  Garden  and  Forest,  vol.  i,  p.  511. 


156       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


with  agreeable  luminous  color,  especially  in  the  mid- 
dle distance. 

Yellow  Chestnut  Oak.   Tne  yellow  chestnut  oak  has  a  pe- 
Quercm  Muhlenberg  a.  culiarly   narrow   leaf   scarcely   two 

Quercus  acuminata.  -,  .  .  ,  ,  ,  .   , 

inches  in  width,  which  more  near- 
ly resembles  the  chestnut  leaf  than  that  of  any  other 

chestnut  oak.  The 
tree  grows  from  80  to 
100,  and  sometimes  160 
feet  high,  but  it  rarely 
exceeds  an  altitude  of 
50  feet  when  growing 
in  the  open.  The  bark 
of  the  trunk  is  dull,  sil- 
very gray,  with  a  more 
or  less  scaly  surface.  The 
leaves,  which  are  a  beautiful 
dw  green  above  and  silvery 
gray  below,  are  crowded  at  the 
ends  of  the  branches,  and  hang  so  that 
the  under  surfaces  show  with  every 
passing  breeze.  This  imparts  a  novel 
and  delightful  nickering  color  to  the 
tree  which  reminds  one  of  the  trem- 
bling aspen ;  but  the  oak's  shift  of 
light  is  slower,  and  its  coloring  is  far  richer.  In 
autumn  the  leaves  turn  an  orange-bronze  hue. 


Yellow  Chestnut 
Oak. 


TIIE  OAKS  WITH   ACORNS. 


o  i 


The  yellow  chestnut  oak  grows  on  rich  lands  over 
the  same  extent  of  country  (but  in  lower  regions)  as 
the  chestnut  oak.  It  extends  no  farther  northeasl 
than  Massachusetts,  but  in  the  West  it  is  found  as  far 
as  Nebraska  and  eastern  Kansas.  It  also  extends 
through  the  South  to  Texas.  It  attains  its  fullest 
proportions  in  the  valley  of  the  lower  Wabash  Iiiver 
and  its  vicinity. 

The  acorn  has  a  rounded,  thin 
cup  with  close  scales,  which  most  fre- 
quently covers  one  third  of  the  nut. 

These  four  species  conclude  the 
list  of  chestnut  oaks. 

The  live  oak  has  an 


Live  Oak. 

Quercus  virens.       essentially    different 

*  leaf       irom      those 

which  I  have  already  described.  It 
is  evergreen,  thick  and  leathery,  lias 
no  lobes  or  divisions,  and  is  rarely, 
if  ever,  toothed.  It  measures  from 
two  to  five  inches  in  length,  and  is 
smooth,  dark  green  above,  but  hoary 
beneath.  The  acorns  are  rich  dark 
brown  in  color,  and  have  a  rather 
pointed  nut  with  a  sweet  kernel. 
The  leaves  remain  green  well  on  into  the  winter, 
and  then  turn   yellowish   brown,  falling  onlj   when 


Live  Oak. 


158       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 

the  new  leaves  appear  in  the  spring.  The  wood  has 
a  yellowish  color  and  is  extremely  heavy,  a  cubic 
foot  weighing  a  trifle  over  fifty -nine  pounds.  It  has 
a  beautiful  grain  and  is  susceptible  of  a  fine  polish, 
but  it  is  extremely  hard  to  work,  and  takes  the  edge 
off  every  tool.  Years  ago  it  was  highly  esteemed 
for  shipbuilding,  and  in  1799  the  Government  spent 
two  hundred  thousand  dollars  in  the  purchase  of 
Southern  lands  on  which  live-oak  timber  was  grow- 
ing suitable  for  the  navy.  The  use  of  iron  in  mod- 
ern shipbuilding,  however,  having  greatly  diminished 
the  need  of  oak  timber,  the  Government,  by  the  con- 
summation of  an  act  finally  approved  by  Congress  in 
February,  1895,  opened  for  entry  and  occupation  by 
the  public  large  tracts  of  wooded  land  which  it  had 
held  for  many  years  in  the  interest  of  the  navy.* 

Live  oak  grows  from  Virginia  southward  near  the 
coast  to  Florida,  where  it  abounds.  It  extends  along 
the  Gulf  States  to  Texas,  where  it  reaches  its  limit  in 
the  valley  of  the  Red  River  and  the  extreme  western 
borders  of  the  State.  It  varies  in  size  from  a  mere 
shrub  to  a  tree  40  or  50  feet  high. 

*  Vide  Silva  of  North  America,  C.  S.  Sargent. 


CHAPTEE  XII. 

I.  Simple  Alternate  Leaves. 

2.  With  teeth  (some  without).     B.  Edge  divided  (some  undivided). 

THE  OAKS   WITH  ACORNS   WHICH  RIPEN 

IN  TWO   YEARS. 

Red  Oak.  The  red  oak  grows  from  TO  to  80 

Querms  rubra.  feet  high,  and  is  the  most  northern 
species  of  the  country.  I  find  it  very  common  in  the 
White  Mountain  region  of  New  Hampshire.  A  hand- 
some though  not  large  specimen  growing  on  the  slope 
of  Sunset  Hill,  Campton,  measures  45  feet  in  height, 
and  has  a  trunk  with  a  circumference  of  over  nine 
feet.  The  red  oak  extends  from  Maine  to  Tennessee, 
and  follows  the  Alleghany  Mountains  to  northern 
Georgia;  westward  it  extends  to  Minnesota  and  cen- 
tral Kansas.  In  the  summer  its  hristle-tipped  leaf  is 
bright  green,  and  in  the  autumn  it  turns  a  rich,  deep 
red  or  a  dull  orange.  The  acorn  requires  two  years 
in  which  to  mature ;  its  cup  is  saucer-shaped,  and  the 

nut  is  large.     The  tree  attains  its  greatest  size  in  the 

151) 


160      FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 

States  north  of  the  Ohio  River,  but  at  its  southern 
limit  it  is  very  small. 

The  red  oak,  near  the  northern  borders  of  the 


Red  Oak. 


United  States,  often  bears  leaves  with  fewer  divisions, 
and  smaller  acorns ;  but  such  forms  are  so  intermixed 
and  inconstant  that  they  can  not  be  considered  varie- 


THE   OAKS   WITH    ACORNS. 


L61 


ties.*     My  larger  drawing  was  taken  from  a  young 
tree  in  Canipton,  1ST.  II.,  and  that  of  the  single  1 
was  taken  from  a  tree  in  New  Jersey. 

The  bark  of  the  trunk  is  dark  gray-brown, 
with  a  surface  of  scaly  plates.     The 
tree  grows  rapidly   and  is 
peculiarly  adapted  for  the 
ornamentation  of 
parks  and  road- 
sides in  the  most 
northern  States, 
although    it    is 
by  no  means  as 
beautiful  as  the 
following     spe- 
cies. 

Scarlet  Oak.  The 
Quercus  coccinea.  gear- 
let  oak  deserves  its 
name,  as  the  leaves 
turn  a  most  bril- 
liant red,  all  hut  I  Red0ak- 
scarlet.f     This  statement  may  seem  a  trifle  anoma- 


*  Vide  Silva  of  North  America,  C.  S.  Sargent. 

f  Scarlet  is  a  red  thoroughly  saturated  with  yellow  :  vermilion 
is  typical  of  such  a  color,  and  it  is  commonly  seen  in  the  Madame 
Crozy  canna. 


12 


162       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

lous,  but  the  name  is  not  inapplicable,  for  "  scarlet " 
is  a  word  commonly  accepted  as  synonymous  with 
bright  red,  and  the  foliage  of  this  species  turns  a  more 


Scarlet  Oak. 


brilliant  color  than  that  of  any  of  the  other  oaks.  The 
leaf  is  bright  red  when  it  is  born,  lustrous  green  when 
it  reaches  maturity,  and  burning  red  when  it  dies.    It 


THE  OAKS   WITH   ACORNS.  [63 

is  also,  as  Ruskin  would  say,  "deeply  rent,"  for  the 
lobes  are  cut  very  deeply,  and  impart  a  very  ragged 
appearance  to  the  foliage. 

The  acorn  has  a  thick,  top-shaped  cup,  which 
covers  the  third  of  the  nut.  The  kernel  is  hitter  and 
whitish.  The  bark  of  the  trunk  is  thick,  brownish, 
and  roughly  seamed.  The  tree  grows  from  T<>  to  vl1 
feet  high,  and  is  one  of  our  most  charmingly  orna- 
mental sylvan  characters,  particularly  suited  to  the 
landscape  garden  because  of  its  beautiful  autumn 
coloring,  and  its  vivacious  leafage  which  fairly 
sparkles  in  the  sunlight. 

The  scarlet  oak  stows  beside  the  Androscoggin 
River  in  Maine,  and  extends  thinly  through  south- 
ern New  Hampshire  to  Vermont  and  central  New 
York.  It  also  extends  from  Massachusetts  Bay  to 
the  District  of  Columbia  and  along  the  Alleghany 
Mountains  to  North  Carolina ;  westward  it  is  found 
from  Michigan  and  Illinois  to  Nebraska  and  Min- 
nesota. 

Black  Oak.        The  leaves  of  the  black  oak  arc  do! 
Quercus  coccmea,      g0  (]eep]y  incised  as  those  of  the  scar- 

var.  tinctoria.  1   J 

Quercus  velutina.  let  oak,  and  its  trunk  is  much  darker 
in  color;  in  fact,  its  branches  often  appear  blackish. 
The  tree  grows  70  to  80  and  rarely  150  feel  high.  It 
has  a  wide  range,  which  extends  from  New  Fork  to 
the  Gulf  States.    Its  limit  eastward  is  in  southern  New 


IQ±       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

England,  and  westward  in  Kansas  and  Texas.     The 
finest  growth  is  in  the  valley  of  the  lower  Ohio  River. 


Black  Oak. 


The  leaf  is  somewhat  thin,  dark  green  when  mature, 
with  a  yellower  under  surface,  and  in  autumn  it  turns 
a  dull,  rich,  leather-red  color.  It  falls  during  the 
winter.  The  acorn  is  small,  and  has  a  deep  cup  with 
rather  a  jagged  rim  and  rough  surface.     I  have  no- 


THE  OAKS  WITH   ACORNS. 


10; 


.> 


ticed  that  many  of  the  smooth  nuts  are  striped,  but  a 
much  more  reliable 
characteristic     is 
connected  with 
the  kernel ;  this 
is    very    yell >  w 
and  bitter.     The 
inner  bark  of 
this     oak     is 
orange  in  col- 
or and  sat- 
urated  with 
tannin,  which 
makes  it  valua- 
ble to  the  tanner 
and   dyer.      It  is 
commercially  known 
as  quercitron. 

Pin  or  Swamp  Tlie    ]©af     of 

Spanish  Oak.    the     pin    oak 

Quercus  palustrls.     i  i  j 

v  l  has         broad 

rounded,  deep  incisions  and 
sharp,  bristle  -  tipped  divis- 
ions ;   it  is  bright  green  above 

and  a  trifle  paler  below  in  summer,  and  in  autumn 
it  changes  to  a  rich  bronze  red.  The  acorn  has  a 
saucer-shaped   cup   with   thin    scales,   and    a    round- 


Pin  Oak. 


166       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

ish  nut  barely  half  an  inch  in  length.  This  oak  is 
common  on  the  borders  of  swamps  and  in  low  lands 
from  Connecticut  westward  to  Missouri,  and  south- 
ward to  the  Potomac  River,  Virginia ;  it  also  extends 
from  central  Kentucky  to  the  eastern  parts  of  Indian 
Territory.  It  is  rare  and  small  in  New  England,  and 
reaches  its  finest  development  in  the  valley  of  the 
lower  Ohio  River.  It  grows  70  or  80  and  in  thick 
forests  occasionally  120  feet  high.  The  bark  is  light 
gray-brown,  smoothish,  and  has  small  scales.  The 
wood  is  reddish  and  coarse-grained.  The  pin  oak  gets 
its  name  from  the  pinlike  appearance  of  the  tiny 
branchlets  which  are  set  in  the  limbs  and  trunk.  I 
know  of  no  beautiful  specimens  of  this  tree  in  New 
England,  excepting  two  comparatively  youthful  ones 
in  the  Arnold  Arboretum,  near  the  residence  of  Mr. 
Jackson  Dawson ;  but  in  Flushing,  L.  I.,  in  Fair- 
mount  Park,  Philadelphia,*  and  in  Prospect  Park, 
Brooklyn,-)-  there  are  quite  a  number  of  handsome 
and  symmetrical  large  trees,  which  can  not  fail  to 
attract  attention. 

*  In  this  park  there  is  an  avenue  of  beautiful  pin  oaks  which, 
although  they  were  planted  as  late  as  1881,  have  already  attained 
symmetrical  proportions  and  an  average  height  of  30  feet.  The 
trunks  are  about  a  foot  in  diameter  now,  but  when  the  trees  were 
planted  they  measured  about  an  inch  and  a  half. 

f  Prospect  Park  is  particularly  fortunate  in  the  possession  of 
many  splendid  large  trees.  In  this  respect  it  excels  Central  Park, 
New  York. 


THE   OAKS   WITH    ACORNS. 


107 


Spanish  Oak.       The  Spanish  oak  is  distinguished  by 

Querent  falcata.        .,      ,  ,         -i     i      ,i  n         i.    . 

Querem  digitata.  lts  broad-ended,  three-  to  five-dm- 
sioned  leaf,  which  is  always  downy  underneath  and 
of  a  somewhat  dull  -  green  color  above. 
The  acorn  has  a  saucer-shaped  cup  with 
a  top-shaped  base,  and  a  round- 
ish nut  with  a  bitter  kernel ; 
it  is  nearly  stemless.  The  tree 
grows  from  40  to  70  feet  high, 
and  is  found  in  dry  or  sandy 
soil  from  Long  Island  through 
New  Jersey  to  Florida ;  *  west- 
ward it  extends  from  southern 
Indiana  and  Illinois  to  Mis- 
souri and  Texas.  The  bark  is 
blackish  brown  and  is  deeply  furrowed.  It  contains 
a  large  amount  of  tannin,  and  is  therefore  valued  by 
the  tanner. 

The  Spanish  oak  and  the  four  species  preceding  it 
complete  the  list  of  black  and  red  oaks  which  are 
common.  Their  acorns  require  two  years  in  which 
to  ripen. 

Water  Oak         The  water  oak,  as  its  name  implies,  is 

Querent  aquation.      found     ill     Wet     situations.       It    gTOWfl 

Querent  nigra.        from   3Q   to   40  and  occasionally   V|> 


Spanish  Oak 


It  is  also  reported  from  Bucks  County,  Pa. 


168       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 


Water  Oak. 


feet  high.    In  summer  the  leaf  is  a  glossy,  rich  bottle- 
green,  and  in  autumn  it  changes  to  a  duller  green, 
and  remains  that  color  well  on  into  the 
winter.     It  is,  in  fact,  partially  ever- 
green.     The    acorn    has   a  saucer- 
shaped  cup,  and  a  globular,  downy 
nut  with  a  very  bitter  kernel. 

The  water  oak  is  distributed 
from  southern  Delaware  to 
Tampa  Bay,  Florida,  and 
thence  through  the  Gulf 
States  to  Texas.  It  also  ex- 
tends from  the  centers  of 
Kentucky  and  Tennessee 
to  Missouri  and  Arkansas.  The  bark  is  comparative- 
ly smooth,  and  light  brown, 
with  close  scales. 

The    leaves    are 
variable,  but  I  have 
drawn  the  common- 
est types. 

Black   Jack  or  Tlie        ^]ack 

Barren  Oak.  Jack   or  bar- 

Quercus  nigra.  ^     ^   ^ 

Quercus 

Marilandica.  a     singularly 

wedge-shaped,    broad-ended    leaf, 
piack  jack  oak.    thick,  dark   shining  green   above,  and 


tiie  oaks  wrrn  acorns. 


L69 


yellowish  and  rusty  colored  below.  In  autumn  it 
turns  brown  or  brown-yellow.  The  acorn  has  a 
coarse-scaled,  top-shaped  cup  which  half  covers  the 
nut.     It  is  nearly  but  not  quite  stemless. 

The  black  Jack  oak  is  common  in  sandy  barrens, 
and  extends  from  Long  Island  southward  to  Tampa 
Bay,  Florida,  and  westward  to  southeastern  Nebraska 
and  Texas,  including  portions  of  the  intermediate 
country.  It  is  a  small  tree,  20  to 
30  or  rarely  50  feet  high. 

Laurel  or  Shingle  Oak.    The    laurel     or 
(Juercus  imbricaria.       shingle  Oak 

grows  from  30  to  60,  and  in  low, 
rich  grounds  occasionally  100  feet 
high.     Its  leaf  is  similar  to  that 
of   the   laurel  ;   thick,    stiff,  dark 
green,  smooth,  and  lustrous  above, 
and  pale  green  and  downy  below. 
In  autumn  it  turns  a  rich,  leather- 
red  color.     The  acorn  has  a  globu- 
lar nut  and  a  thin  cup  with  close- 
pressed  scales.     The  kernel  is  bitter. 
The  bark  is  light  brown,   and  has 
close,  ruddy  scales.      The  wood  from  an  early  date 
has  been  used  in  the  making  of  shingles — hence  the 
name   "  shingle    oak."      This   species    is   commonly 
found  in  rich  woodlands  from  Lehigh  County,  Pa., 


Laurel  Oak. 


170      FAMILIAR   TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


to  Wisconsin,  Missouri,  and  northeastern  Kansas.     It 

extends   southward  along  the  Alleghany  Mountains 

to  Georgia  and  Alabama,  and  also  from  Tennessee 

to  northern  Arkansas.     Its  largest  growth  is 

in    the    valley   of    the   lower    Ohio 

River. 

Willow  Oak.       The    willow     oak 

Quercus  Phellos.       (QQ       to       80      feet 

high),  so  named    because   its  leaves 
resemble  those  of  the  willow,  is  a 
beautiful    tree     which    frequently 
shades    the    streets     of      Southern 
towns.     The  leaf  is  a  brilliant  light 
green  above,   and    dull,  pale   green 
below.      The  tiny  acorn  has  a  sau- 
cer-shaped cup  and  a  small  globular  nut.     The  ker- 
nel is  orange-yellow  and  bitter.     The  stem  is  exceed- 
ingly short. 

This  oak  is  found  on  the  borders  of  swamps  or  in 
sandy,  low  woods,  from  Tottenville,  Staten  Island, 
~N.  Y.,  to  northeastern  Florida.  It  is  also  distributed 
along  the  Gulf  States  to  Texas,  and  extends  from 
southern  Kentucky  through  Tennessee  to  Arkansas 
and  southeastern  Missouri. 

The  bark  is  reddish  brown,  and  has  close  scales ;  it 
K  comparatively  smooth.  The  willow  oak  is  a  beauti- 
ful shade  tree,  whose  remarkable   foliage  lights  up 


Willow  Oak. 


TTTE   OAKS   WITII   ACORNS.  171 

prettily  in  the  sunny  South.     Its  small,  leathery  Leaf 

remains  green  long  after  those  of  other  trees  are 
brown  and  sere.  The  tree  has  also  the  advantage  of 
being  a  rapid  grower.  One  of  its  most  distinguished 
relatives,  the  English  oak  (Quercm  Robwr)^  is  hardly 
more  interesting  or  beautiful.  Certainly  the  contrast 
between  these  two  trees  of  the  same  family  could 
not  be  greater.  There  is  hardly  a  point  of  resem- 
blance between  -them.  The  great  aged  oaks  of  Eng- 
land* are  nursed  and  guarded  with  something  like 
reverential  awe.  Their  historical  associations  are 
cherished  records.  But  the  American  willow  oak  is  a 
tree  without  a  history.  Nevertheless,  it  is  certainly  a 
modern  sylvan  beauty,  refreshingly  novel,  and  decid- 
edly unconventional. 

The  willow  oak  and  the  three  species  which  pre- 
cede it  complete  the  list  of  common  leather-leaved 
oaks,  some  of  which  are  nearly  or  quite  evergreen  in 
the  South. 

*  Some  of  these  English  oaks  were  planted  about  the  time  of 
the  Norman  conquest,  10G6.  Cowthrop  oak,  Cowthrop,  Yorkshire, 
is  seventy-eight  feet  in  circuit  at  the  ground,  and  is  at  Least  eight- 
een hundred  years  old.  The  Cowthrop  oak  is  on  the  estate  "f 
Lord  Petre  ;  it  has  a  girth  of  sixty  feet,  and  previous  to  t  ho  de- 
struction of  its  largest  branch  by  a  storm  in  1718,  it  spread  over 
half  an  acre.  There  is  one  in  Dorsetshire  said  to  be  its  equal  in 
age,  and  one  near  Fountain  Abbey,  Ripon,  in  Yorkshire,  is  cer- 
tainly over  twelve  hundred  years  old. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

I.  Simple  Alternate  Leaves. 

2.  With  teeth.  B.  Edge  divided. 

BUTTONWOOD  AND  LIQUID  AMBER. 

The  buttonwood,  which  is  also  com- 
Buttonwood  or 

Sycamore,   monly   but   quite    improperly   called 
Piatanus  svcamore,  is   a  tall,  ruggedly  hand- 

occidentaUs.  . 

some  tree,  which  sometimes  attains  a 
height  of  150  feet.  Gray  calls  it  our  largest  tree, 
and  Whittier  has  made  it  celebrated  in  his  poem 
entitled  The  Sycamores.  The  Occidental  plane  trees 
— Hugh  Tallant's  sycamores,  sung  by  the  poet — 
were  planted  by  the  Irish  pioneer  in  1738,  over  a 
century  and  a  half  ago,  beside  the  Merrimac  River, 
where  now  stands  the  city  of  Haverhill,  Mass.*  Be- 
neath their  shade,  tradition  says,  Washington  passed 
in  his  triumphal  journey  through  the  North  in  1789, 

*  Only  two  or  three  of  these  trees  now  remain  standing ;  they 
measure  about  six  feet  in  trunk  circumference.  Formerly  a  long 
row  of  them  adorned  what  is  known  as  the  Saltonstall  estate. 

172 


BUTTON  Wool)   AND    LIQDIDAMBER.  173 

the  year  of  his  election  to  the  presidency  of  the  new 
nation  ;  and  to  this  day, 

Still  green  and  tall  and  stately, 
On  the  river's  winding  shores, 

surrounded  by  city  sights  and  sounds,  stand  the  old 
buttonwood  trees.* 

Kentucky  is  the  favorite  home  of  the  buttonwood, 
and  in  its  rich  soil  the  tree  thrives  far  better  than  it 
does  in  the  less  fertile  regions  of  the  North.  Beside 
the  grave  of  Daniel  Boone,  in  the  cemetery  at  Frank- 
fort, stand  several  handsome  trees  which,  although 
they  are  not  very  tall,  possess  ample  and  graceful 
proportions. 

I  found  in  the  village  of  Plymouth,  N.  H.,  two 
grand  old  specimens,  which  I  have  sketched ;  these 
must  be  quite  one  hundred  years  old.  Among  the 
leaves  which  had  fallen  from  the  trees  in  October 
last  were  several  handsome  russet-colored  specimens 
which  measured  ten  inches  in  width.  The  leaves  are 
boldly  if  not  beautifully  modeled,  and  have  a  tine 
leathery  texture;  the  few  teeth  which  they  possess 
are  so  large  that  the  leaf  really  appears  to  have  an 
undisturbed,  entire   edge.     I   remember,  as  a  child, 

*  It  is  said  that  under  these  trees,  which  form  a  green  archway 
over  the  river  road.  Whittier  conceived  the  plan  of  his  poem, 
Skipper  Ireson's  Ride. 


174       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


BUTTOXVVOOD   AND    LIQUIDAMBER.  17;, 

several  large  sycamores  od  Washington  Square  in 
New  York,  the  hollow  trunk  of  one  of  which  was 
the  haunt  of  a  gray  squirrel,  the  pet  of  the  police- 
man in  charge  of   the   park  and  of  the  children  in 

the  neighborhood ;  but  that  particular  tree  has  long 
since  disappeared,  and  within  a  few  feet  of  the 
spot  where  it  stood  is  now  the  beautiful  white 
marble  Washington  Arch.  The  bark  of  the  button- 
wood  has  a  peculiar  way  of  peeling  off  each  year  in 
broad,  thin,  brittle  scales ;  this  gives  the  trunk  a  re- 
markable patched  effect  in  light  buff  and  brown-gray 
color,  quite  sufficient  for  the  complete  identification 
of  the  tree.  The  fruit  is  a  pretty  little,  round,  but- 
tonlike ball,  which  hangs  by  its  long,  wiry  stem 
swinging  in  the  wind  through  the  greater  part  of 
the  winter. 

The  buttonwood  attains  its  greatest  proportions 
in  the  valleys  of  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi  Rivers, 
where  it  is  commonly  seen  over  80  feet  high.  Its 
wood  is  brownish,  coarse-grained,  and  apt  to  crack  ;  it 
also  decays  rapidly  if  exposed  to  the  weather;  never- 
theless, the  grain  of  the  wood  is  exceedingly  beauti- 
ful, and  shows  itself  to  great  advantage  in  the  in- 
terior trimminffs  of  a  house.     It  is  also  used  in  the 

o 

manufacture  of  cigar  boxes. 

The    Oriental   plane   tree   (Ptatcmus   orientalis), 

sometimes  planted  in   our  parks,  is   very  similar  to 


176      FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

the  American  variety,  but  its  leaf  is  not  as  large 
and  is  more  deeply  cut ;  its  shape  is  very  nearly 
like  that  of  the  sugar  maple.  This  tree  is  not  as 
hardy  as  the  native  variety. 

Liquidambar,  The    liquidambar,    sometimes    called 

Sweet  Gum,  or  sweet  gum,  is  one  of  the  most  mag- 

T.    .,       '  nificent  of  our  American  trees.     In 

Liquidambar 

styraciflua.  the  South  it  not  infrequently  reaches 
a  height  of  100  or  even  140  feet.  Its  name  is  derived 
from  liquidus  (fluid)  and  the  Arabic  ambar  (amber), 
in  description  of  the  yellow  juice  which  exudes  from 
the  tree ;  this  has  a  fragrant,  balsamic  odor,  which 
evidently  accounts  for  the  name  sweet  gum.  The 
gum  is  used  for  medicinal  purposes. 

The  leaf  of  this  tree  is  very  regular  and  beautiful 
in  shape  as  well  as  coloring ;  in  the  fall  of  the  year 
it  assumes  a  golden-yellow  tint,  clouded  over  irregu- 
larly with  a  rich  red ;  in  summer  its  green  is  deep, 
smooth,  and  shining ;  it  does  not  vary  much  from 
these  hues.  I  might  liken  its  shape  to  that  of  a  star- 
fish, but  with  broad  points  and  a  one-sided  radiation. 
The  teeth  are  very  fine  and  even,  and  the  divisions 
vary  from  three  to  seven ;  five  is  the  commonest 
number.  The  base  of  the  leaf  is,  of  course,  heart- 
shaped,  but  sometimes  it  is  flatter  in  effect  than  my 
sketch  indicates.  There  is  a  little  woolly  tuft  on  the 
back  of  the  leaf  just  where  the  ribs  meet. 


BUTTONWOOD   AND   LIQUIDAMBAR 


i  *•  - 
1  t  « 


13 


178       FAMILIAR   TREES   AND   THEIR   LEAVES. 

The  bark  is  brown -gray,  and  is  seamed  vertically ; 
the  branches  push  out  at  almost  right  angles  below 
(not  so  very  far  from  the  ground),  and  if  these  are 
examined  it  will  be  found  that  they  are  covered  with 
strange,  corky -looking  ridges,  reminding  one  of  a  fun- 
gous growth.  In  a  warm  climate  the  sweet-smelling 
gum  is  frequently  noticeable  on  the  bark, 
and  by  bruising  the  leaf  the  same  spicy 
odor  may  be  obtained.  One  is  enabled 
to  recognize  the  tree  without  difficul- 
ty by  means  of  the  leaf  and  the  aro- 
matic sap.  But  this  is  not  enough ; 
the  liquidambar  is  deserving  of  our 
closest  attention.     From  the  con- 

Liquiriamber      ^*       ventional    and    decorative    seed- 
seed  vessel.  bftllj  fille(j  with  a  1()t  of  abortiye  seed 

(there  are  few  good  ones)  fine  as  sawdust,  to  the  wide 
expanse  of  the  charmingly  proportioned  tree  itself,  it 
is  beautiful  in  every  way ;  as  a  shade  tree  it  has 
few  rivals,  and  as  an  ornament  for  a  park  or  private 
grounds  it  has  no  equal,  unless  it  be  the  sugar  maple. 
Both  trees  frequently  assume  a  perfect  egg-shaped 
outline,  but  in  its  leafy  details  I  consider  the  liquid- 
ambar decoratively  superior  to  the  maple.  The  tree 
reaches  its  finest  growth  in  the  Mississippi  Valley; 
it  can  rarely  be  found  north  of  Connecticut,  and  it  is 
commonest  south  of  Baltimore  and  St.  Louis.     Curi- 


BUTTON  WOOD   AND    LIQUIDAMBER.  !;<♦ 

ously  enough,  although  the  liquidambar  beare  qo  re 
semblance  to  the  witch-hazel  (Hama/melis   Vi/rgi/ni- 
(t/K()y  it  belongs,  with  only  two  other  members,  to  the 
Witch-Hazel  family. 


CHAPTEE  XIV. 

II.  Simple  Opposite  Leaves. 

1.  Without  teeth.  A.  Edge  not  divided. 

FLOWERING  DOGWOOD,  ETC. 

Flowering  Dogwood.   The  flowering  dogwood    is    distin- 
Cornus  florida.       guished    by   apparent,  large,   dull- 
white   flowers  with  four  notched   petals ;  but  these 

are  really  bracts  (leaflets)  set  around 
the  cluster  of  true  flowers  in  the 
center,  which  are  greenish  yel- 
low.*    The  leaves  are  from 
three  to  five  inches 
long,  and  have  in- 
dented whitish  ribs 
nearly  following  the 
general     curve     of    the 

Flowering  Dogwood. 

edges ;   they  turn  a  rich 
red   in   autumn.      The    bunches    of    ovoid,   bright- 

*  They  bloom  in  Massachusetts  in  late  May,  and  in  Texas  in 
March. 

180 


FLOWERING   DOGWOOD,   ETC.  l$i 

red  berries  are  ripe  in  early  autumn,  when  with  the 

changing  foliage  they  produce  a  very  decorative 
effect  on  the  tree.  The  flowering  dogwood  grows 
from  15  to  40  feet  high,  and  is  common  in  dry 
woods  from  southern  New  England  to  Florida, 
Texas,  and  southern  Missouri.  There  are  several 
beautiful  though  not  large  specimens  in  the  Arnold 
Arboretum,  where,  with  many  other  foreign  species, 
they  combine  in  making  the  roadsides  gorgeous  in 
October. 

Alternate-leaved        Tlie    veiT    name     of     thc     alternate- 
Dogwood,   leaved  dogwood  seems  to  imply  that 

Cornus  altemifolia.    {%    ig    Qut    of    p]flce    here    {r    my    ^ 

classification.  But  this  particular  species  is  an  ex- 
ception to  the  rule,  and  ought  not  to  be  separated 
from  its  relatives,  as  its  general  appearance  also 
rather  inclines  one  to  think  it  opposite-leaved — look 
at  my  sketch!  The  leaves  really  seem  opposite,  but 
they  are  not ;  one  stem  grows  independently  just 
below  the  other,  and  not  conjointly  with  it.*  For 
the  reverse  of  this  arrangement  look  at  the  red  maple, 
which  very  likely  will  be  found  growing  beside  the 
dogwood,  convenient  for  comparison.  The  alternate- 
leaved  dogwood  has  very  beautiful,  slender,  coral-like 


*  It  occasionally  happens,  though,  that  the   leaves  do  grow 
opposite. 


182      FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 

red   stems   bearing  pretty,   dark,   gray-blue   berries, 
which  are  ripe  in  early  October.     The  tree  is  com- 


Alternate-leaved  Dogwood. 


/non  beside  the  roads  and  on  the  banks  of  streams  in 
the  mountain  regions  of  New  Hampshire ;  in  fact,  it 
is  a  familiar  object  in  all  the  Northern  States ;  it  also 
extends  southward  through  the  Alleghany  Mountains 
as  far  as  northern  Georgia  and  Alabama.  It  is  often- 
est  found  in  shrub  form,  but  frequently  it  grows  to  a 
height  of  25  or  even  30  feet. 


FLOWERING  DOGWOOD,    ETC. 


183 


For  the  sake  of  comparison  with  the  alternate- 
leaved  variety,  1  draw  a  spray  of  red  osier  (Gorrvua 


Red  Osier  Dogwood. 

stolonifera\  which  is  opposite-leaved.  This  charm- 
ing species  is  frequently  a  prominent  object  on  the 
border  of  a  snow-clad  meadow  in  midwinter,  when 
its  bright-red  twigs  may  be  distinguished  a  mile 
away.     It   is  merely  a  shrub,   which   grows   only   6 


184       FAMILIAR  TREES   AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 


feet   high.     Its   foreign   relative,   the    Siberian   red- 
stemmed  cornel  (Comus  alba),  is  another  shrub  or 
tree  handsomely  colored ;  this  variety  is  often  found 
in  parks  and  gardens ;  it  has  a  white  berry. 
Tartarian  The  Tartarian  honeysuckle,  although 

Honeysuckle,  it  does  not  belong  to  our  country,  has 
Lomcera  Tartar ica.  become  pretty  firmly  rooted  in  our 
parks  and  gardens.     It  often  grows  to  the  height  of 

nearly  20  feet,  and  is  occasional- 
ly trimmed  into  a  treelike  figure. 
There  is  just  such  a  well-trained 
tree  in  the  Public  Garden,  Bos- 
ton, which  is  very  beautiful  in  its 
spring  dress.  The  leaves  are 
smooth  and  somewhat  heart- 
shaped.  The  flowers  grow  in 
pairs,  and  are  of  a  soft,  magenta- 
pink  color ;  they  bloom  in  May  in  great  profusion. 
This  honeysuckle  comes  from  Asia. 

Fringe  Tree.       Tne  fringe  tree  has  a  smooth,  thick 
Chionanthns  leaf,  three  to  six  inches  long,  which 

irgi  resembles  that  of  the  magnolia.  It 
gets  its  name  from  x^v,  snow,  and  dvOos,  flower,  in 
allusion  to  the  snow-white  flower  clusters ;  these  hang 
in  beautiful,  loose,  drooping  tassels,  which  in  early 
June  give  the  tree  a  very  ornamental  appearance. 
The  petals  of  the  flower  are  narrow,  and  about  an 


Tartarian 
Honeysuckle. 


FLOWERING   POGWool),   ETC. 


1S5 


inch  in  length.     The  oval  fruit  is  half  an  inch  Long, 

and  purple  covered  with  a  bloom.     The  fringe  tree 

arrows  from  8  to  30  feet 

high,   and  is  commonly 

cultivated  ;  it  is  found 

wild    along    the    river 

banks  of  New   Jersey, 

south  Pennsylvania,  and 

the  Southern  States. 

_  <L  ,  The  ca- 

Catalpa. 

Indian  Bean.         talpa,  or  h 

Catalpa  bignonoides.  dian       bean 
Catatpa  Catalpa. 

has  a  large, 
light  -  green,  heart  -  shaped 
leaf,  smooth  above  and  downy 
below,  especially  on  the  ribs ;  the  stems  are  also 
woolly.  The  tree  grows  from  20  to  40  feet  high, 
and  has  wide-spreading,  coarse,  stiff  branches,  with 
bark  of  a  light  buff-gray  color.  The  trunk  has 
dull,  silver-gray  bark  slightly  seamed  up  and  down. 
The  delicate,  sweet-scented  flowers  are  white,  plen- 
tifully spotted  with  yellow  and  purple;  they  appear 
in  thick  clusters  in  earlv  summer.* 

The   catalpa   is   common    from    New    York    city 
southward,  and  is  cultivated  as  far  north  as  Albany 


Fringe  Tree. 


*  It  is  said  that  honey  collected  from  these  flowers  has  poison- 
ous properties. 


186       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


and  Boston ;  in  fact,  I  know  of  several  flourishing, 
good -sized  specimens   beside   a  hotel   in   the  White 

Mountain  region  of  New 
Hampshire.  The  first  tree 
of  this  species  planted  in 
New   England    stands    on 

Washington 
Street,  Hart- 
ford ;  it  is  over 
ninety  years 
old.*     The  ca- 


Catalpa  Leaf. 


talpa  bean,  I  remember,  long 
rears  ago  was  surreptitiously 
smoked  by  small  boys  ;  wheth- 
er it  is  to-day  or  not  I  do  not 
know,  but  the  somewhat  aro- 
matic   smell   of    a    smoldering 


*  Vide  Trees  and  Tree  Planting,  by  General  J.  S.  Brisbin. 


FLOWERING  DOGWOOD,   ETC.  1ST 

pod  haunts  one's  memory,  and  it  was  vividly  recalled 
to  mine,  bringing  with  it  a  long  chain  of  old  ascoci- 
ations,  by  a  recent  visit  to  an  Italian  cathedral  in 
which  incense  had  been  burned.  The  pod  ifi  ten 
inches  long,  of  a  dull,  light-brown  color;  its  seeds 
are  winged  and  fringed  (see  the  drawing  at  A).  The 
tree  is  a  rapid  grower. 

Western  Cataipa.  The  Western  catalpa  is  a  much  larger 
Catalpa  yeciosa.  species ;  it  frequently  attains  a  height 
of  from  40  to  TO  feet.  Its  leaf  is  similar  to  that  of 
the  other  catalpa,  but  the  two-inch-long  nearly  white 
flowers  are  pale-spotted,  and  the  pod  is  coarse  and 
thick.  This  tree  is  found  growing  wild  in  rich  wood- 
lands in  southern  Indiana  and  immediately  south  and 
west.  Gray  says  the  catalpa  is  sometimes  called 
Cigar  Tree,  from  the  alleged  use  of  the  ripe  pods 
as  cigars.  The  wood  is  grayish-white  and  suscep- 
tible of  a  high  polish,  but  it  is  not  in  common  use 
by  cabinetmakers. 


CHAPTER  XV. 


II.  Simple  Opposite  Leaves. 

2.  With  teeth.  A.  Edge  not  divided. 

BURNING  BUSH,  ETC. 


Burning  Bush. 
"Wahoo. 

Evonymus* 

atropurpurevs, 


The  burning  bush,  sometimes  called 
wahoo  and  spindle  tree,  is  most  fre- 
quently found  in  the  form  of  a  tall 
shrub ;  but  it  is  very  often  cultivated 
and  trimmed  so  as  to  appear  treelike.     It  sometimes 
attains   an   altitude    of   nearly    25   feet   when 
circumstances  are  advantageous.     The  mi- 
nutely   toothed   leaves    are    about    the 
color  of   those  of   the  holly,  but  have 
a  waxy  finish ;   they  are  from  two  to 
five  inches  long ;  in  autumn  they  turn 
pale  yellow.     The  flowers,  which  ap- 
pear in  June,  have  a  four-parted  ap- 
Bu\vaho(?'lsh       pearance  ;    the  rounded  petals  are  deep 


*  Also   spelled  Euonymus:   from  eu,  good,  and    ovo^a,  name, 
cause  it  has  the  bad  reputation  of  poisoning  cattle. — Gray. 

188 


BURNING    BUSH,   ETC.  169 

purple.     The  fruit,  which  ripens  in  October,  ia  also 

four-parted,  and  hangs  on  long,  slender  stems  ;  it  is 
half  an   inch   broad,   light  magenta-purple   in   color, 
and  imparts  to  the  tree  a  very  ornamental  appear- 
ance  in    autumn.      The    burning    bush    grows   wild 
from  western   New  York   to  Wisconsin,  Nebraska, 
Indian  Territory,  and  southward  to  northern  Florida. 
There  is  also  a  European  burning  bush  (Econijums 
Europaius),  which  is  commonly  seen  in   parks  and 
gardens ;  the  fruit  is  similarly  four-divided,  but  these 
divisions   are    somewhat    flattened   and   angular ;    its 
color  is  a  soft,  unvarnished  crimson,  with  a  singular 
touch  of  ruddy  orange — certainly  a  very  odd  com- 
bination of  color.     This  shrub  also  expands  to  large 
proportions  under  favorable  conditions.     There  is  a 
very  pretty  specimen,  perhaps  15  feet  high,  in  the 
Public  Garden,  Boston.     The  burning  bush  is  easily 
identified  by  its  singular  four-sided  crimson  or  ma- 
genta berries  scarcely  half  an  inch  in  diameter.     It 
is  rare,  too,  that  one  finds  a  red  berry  of  a  crimson 
hue  and  without  a  glossy  surface.     In   this  respect, 
therefore,   the   fruit   of   the   burning   bush   is   quite 
unique.     I  know  of  two  beautiful  but  small   speci- 
mens which  £row  beside  an  arbor  in  front  of  a  hotel 
in   the  White   Mountains,   New    Hampshire,   where 
they  are   exposed   to   rigorous  winter  weather  with 
the  mercury  frequently  falling  to  25°  below  zero. 


190       FAMILIAR  TREES   AXD   THEIR  LEAVES. 


Sweet  Viburnum. 


Tlie  sweet  viburnum  has  a  smooth. 


Sheepberry.  bright -green  leaf  about  three  or 
Fibumum  Lentago.  four  inches  long,  closely  and  sharp- 
ly toothed  and  sharp  tipped ;  the  rather  long  stem 
has  a  crinkly  edge  either  side.  Its  ovate 
berry,  blue -black  in  color  with  a  bloom, 
ripens  in  autumn  and  is  sweet  and  edi- 
ble ;  it  is  about  half  an  inch  long,  and 
is  borne  in  red  -  stemmed  clusters. 
The  fine  white  flowers  bloom  in  flat, 
broad  clusters  in  May  or  June.  The 
sweet  viburnum  is  a  small  tree  (it 
grows  from  15  to  30  feet  high),  common 
in  swamps,  along  streams,  and  in  the 
woods,  through  a  wide  north- 
ern range  extending  all  the  way  from 
Hudson  Bay  to  northern  Georgia  and 
from  the  Atlantic  States  to  south- 
western Missouri  and  eastern  Nebras- 
ka. 

Black  Haw.  The     black     naw    is    a 

Viiumum  species    of     viburnum, 

prunifolium.    ^^       obtuge  _  pointed? 

dark  -  green    leaves   from    one    to   two    Black  Haw* 
inches  long ;  the  stems  are  not  crinkly  on  the  edges. 
The   flowers  and  fruit  are   similar  to  those  of  the 
foregoing  variety.      The  fruit  is   also   edible.     The 


Sweet 
Viburnum. 


BURNING    BUSH,    KTC. 


191 


black  haw  is  a  \evy  small  tree,  from   1T>  to  30  feet 
high;  in  the  North  it  is  oftenest  a  thickly  branched 
shrub.     It  is  common  in 
dry  soil  or  beside  streams, 
and  extends  from  south- 
western     Connecticut 
westward    to    Missouri 
and     Indian      Territory, 
and  southward  to  Florida 
and  Texas. 


Arrow-wood.         The  arrow- 

Viburnum  dentatum.    Wuu(]     crets 

to 

its  name  from  the  fact  that  Arrow  wood, 

its  stems  were  used  by  the  Indians  to  make  arrows. 
The  leaves  are  altogether  different  from  those  of 
the  two  preceding  varieties ;  they  are  broadly  ovate, 
sometimes  slightly  heart  shaped,  light  green,  strongly 
straight-veined,  and  the  very  prominent,  sharp  teeth 
resemble  those  of  a  small  circular  saw.  Its  fruit,  a 
quarter  of  an  inch  long,  is  rich  purple-blue  in  color. 
The  arrow-wood  is  a  small  tree,  or  oftenest  a  shrub, 
which  grows  from  5  to  15  feet  high;  it  is  common 
in  wet  places  from  Maine  to  Minnesota,  and  extends 
as  far  south  as  northern  Georgia. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

II.  Simple  Opposite  Leaves. 

2.  With  teeth.  B.  Edge  divided. 

THE  MAPLES. 

The  maples  are  without  doubt  our  handsomest 
trees  in  the  largest  sense  of  the  word ;  no  others 
can  compare  with  them  in  the  splendid  coloring  of 
their  autumnal  dress.  What  surprises  our  English 
cousins,  on  beholding  for  the  first  time  a  New  Eng- 
land landscape  in  autumn,  is  the  brilliancy  of  the 
foliage.  More  credit  is  due  to  the  sugar  and  silver 
maples  for  this  brilliant  color  than  to  all  the  rest 
of  the  trees  put  together.  Scarlet  in  its  purest 
tones,  yellow  in  its  clearest  tints,  golden  orange  with 
hardly  a  touch  of  rust — these  are  hues  which  the 
maples  almost  exclusively  possess,  and  colors  which 
are  rarely  seen  in  Old  England. 

Exclusive    of    its    noble    proportions,    symmetry, 

abundant  foliage,  and  broad  shadows,  the  autumnal 

coloring  of  the  sugar  maple  entitles  it  to  the  first 

192 


THE   MAPLES. 


VJ'o 


U 


Mountain  Maple. 


194       FAMILIAR   TREES   AND   THEIR   LEAVES. 

place  in  our  estimation  as  a  st/rikmgh/  handsome 
American  tree.  But  some  of  its  near  relatives  are 
almost  as  beautiful ;  not  the  least  among  these  is  the 
Mountain  Maple,  mountain  maple,  which  oftener  takes 
Acer  spicatum.  the  form  of  a  tall  shrub  than  it  does 
that  of  a  small  tree.  Its  leaves  are  downy  beneath ; 
they  are  divided  into  three  parts  (rarely  five),  and 
the  teeth  are  rather  coarse  ;  in  autumn  they  turn  a 
bright,  deep,  ruddy  orange  or  red.  Its  spikelike 
clusters  of  greenish-yellow  flowers  appear  in  June. 
The  seeds,  with  narrow  wings  diverging  at  an  obtuse 
angle,  are  often  a  lovely  tone  of  pale  terra-cotta  pink ; 
finally  they  turn  red.  The  mountain  maple  is  com- 
mon in  the  rich  woods  of  the  North,  and  anions  the 
mountains  as  far  south  as  northern  Georgia.  It  is 
most  frequently  found  by  shady  roadsides  or  the 
banks  of  streamlets ;  its  brown  branches  rarely  rise 
over  fifteen  feet  high,  and  as  they  have  a  common 
habit  of  growing  in  clumps,  this  maple  is  properly 
classed  as  a  shrub ;  sometimes,  however,  it  reaches 
a  height  of  from  25  to  30  feet. 

The  mountain  maple  may  be  distinguished  from 
a  young  red  maple  by  the  erect  flower  clusters,  and 
the  undeveloped  condition  of  the  leaves,  if  the  time  is 
June  ;  later,  by  the  three  or  five-divisioned  leaves 
of  soft  texture  and  reflex  curves,  and  also  by  the  ab- 
sence of  the  red  color  which  characterizes  the  twigs 


THE   MAPLES. 


195 


Striped  Maple. 
Acer  Pewnsylvanicum 


of  the  red  maple,  and  in  the  fall  by  the  seeds  whose 
brownish  wings  diverge  at  fully  a  right  angle. 

The  striped  maple  can  be  distin- 
guished at  once  (especially  in  win- 
ter) by  its  vertically  striped  bark, 
and  large,  three-pointed,  goose-foot-shaped  leaves, 
which  measure  five  or  six  inches  in  length. 
The  bark  is  smooth,  greenish,  and  is  striped 
with  a  sort  of  rust  color  sometimes  quite 
dark.  The  leaves  are  very  finely  and 
sharply  double-toothed.  Its  flow- 
ers are  greenish,  and  appear  in 
May  or  June.  The  seeds  have 
large,  divergent,  pale-green  wings, 
and  depend  in  long,  graceful  clus- 
ters. 

The  tree  is  small  and  slender,  nev- 
er reaching  a  height  of  over  35  or 
40  feet ;  it  is  common  throughout  the 
North,  but  is  merely  a  shrub  15  feet  high,  beside 
the  shaded  roads  which  pass  through  the  White 
Mountain  district  of  New  Hampshire  ;  it  reaches 
its  greatest  height  in  the  Big  Smoky  Mountains  in 
Tennessee,  and  extends  no  farther  south  than  north- 
ern Georgia.  I  might  call  attention  to  this  maple 
as  having  a  leaf  distinctly  unlike  those  of  its  rela- 
tives; it  is  so  large,  thin,  and  delicately  if  not  softly 


Mountain  Rlapld. 


196       FAMILIAR   TREES   AND   THEIR   LEAVES. 


tup:  maplks. 


107 


modeled,  that  one  is  impressed  by  its  sharp  contrast 

with   the    rugged   leaf    of    the    sugar   maple,  when 
the  two  are  placed  side  by  side.     A  comparison  of 


Sugar  Maple. 

my  drawings  will  show  how  widely  the  leaves  differ 
in  character. 


198       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 


o  -d    i  ur    i     The    sugar   or   rock    maple  is  the 

Sugar  or  Eock  Maple.  &  * 

Acer  saccharinum.  grandest  member  of  the  family.  It 
Acer  barbatum.  sometimes  reaches  a  height  of  from 
100  to  120  feet.  Its  leaf  is  bold,  and  lacking  in  fine 
modeling,  but  that  in  no  wise  detracts 
from  the  symmetrical  beauty  of  the 
dignified  tree.  The  leaves  generally 
have  five  divisions,  the  notches  be- 
tween which  are  very  rounded ;  the  teeth 
— if  they  can  be  called  such,  so  very 
few  and  coarse  are  they — have  blunt 
points.  Compared  with  its  "  striped  " 
relative,  the  sugar  maple  is  a  tree 
with  foliage  of  a  decidedly  rugged 
character. 
The  greenish-yellow  flowers  of  this  maple  droop 
from  very  slender,  hairy  stems ;  they  come  in  April 
or  May,  while  the  leaves  are  expanding.  The  wings 
of  the  seeds  are  about  an  inch  long,  and  diverge 
something  less  than  at  a  right  angle;  they  are  usu- 
ally of  a  beautiful,  pale  yellow-green ;  the  seed  is 
ripe  in  September.  The  trunk  is  most  frequently 
divided  eight  or  ten  feet  from  the  ground  into  three 
or  four  stout,  perpendicular  branches.  The  leaf  is 
smooth,  dark  green,  and  has  an  eggshell  gloss ;  in 
the  autumn  it  regularly  turns  a  clear  straw  yellow 
on  some  trees,  and  a  variety  of  toned  light  reds  on 


Sugar-Maple  Seed. 


-  4 


#  / 


SUGAR  MAPLE. 

Campton,  Grafton  Co.,   N.  H. 


THE  MAPLES.  100 

others;  not  infrequently  it  assumes  a  golden  or  an 
orange  tint.*  The  bark  of  a  young  tree  La  smooth 
and  gray,  but  on  very  old  specimens  it  becomes  deep- 
ly furrowed,  scaly,  and  assumes  a  dark,  gray-brown 
hue.  The  wood  is  yellowish  white,  and  is  exten- 
sively used  in  cabinet  work ;  it  is  very  hard.f 

There  is  no  more  interesting  tree  in  the  woods 
in  March  than  our  much-prized  sugar  maple.  At 
this  season  the  farmer  taps  the  tree  (with  a  three- 
quarter-inch  auger)  for  the  sweet  sap  which  the 
warm  sunshine  draws  upward  from  its  roots ;  and 
while  the  snow  is  yet  lying  on  the  ground,  the  evi- 
dences of  a  spring  awakening  are  shown  by  the  tree 
in  the  ceaseless  drip  of  its  watery  blood  into  a  tin 
pail  suspended  at  its  side.  When  the  sap  runs  well, 
usually  when  the  sun  has  warmed  the  tree  in  the 
middle  of  the  day,  about  seventy  drops  fall  in  the 
pail  every  minute ;  it  is  a  slow  proceeding,  but  it 
continues  relentlessly,  until  after  three  weeks  or  so 
the  tree  has  yielded  up  its  life  blood  to  the  extent 

*  The  turning  of  maple  leaves  to  unvarying  hues  cadi  autumn 
is  quite  remarkable.  For  years,  two  trees  I  know  of  hare  re- 
sumed exactly  the  same  colors:  one,  russet  orange  above  and 
dull  scarlet  below,  and  the  other  yellowish  rust  color;  even 
an  individual  branch  will  resume  its  own  particular  hue  cadi 
fall. 

f  The  so-called  bird's-eye  maple  and  curled  maple  arc  ran- 
conditions  of  the  wood,  caused  by  undulations  or  ddkrtions  oj 
its  fiber. 


200       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

of  twenty -five  gallons.*  A  large  orchard  in  Ver- 
mont or  New  Hampshire  will  yield,  in  a  good  season, 
one  thousand  pounds  of  sugar,  besides  one  hundred 
gallons  of  sirup,  without  injury  to  the  trees,  f  In  a 
small  maple  grove,  which  is  near  my  summer  home 
in  the  White  Mountains,  it  has  been  my  privilege  to 
watch  the  effect  of  "  tapping "  on  scores  of  trees 
for  a  period  of  twenty-five  years — in  fact,  ever  since 
childhood — and  I  can  not  say  to-day  that  they  seem 
to  have  lost  any  of  their  vigor ;  yet  many  a  farmer 
has  told  me  that  the  process  eventually  kills  the 
tree.  This,  I  find  by  experience,  is  entirely  depend- 
ent upon  the  treatment  it  receives.  There  is  a 
sensitive  if  not  a  human  quality  in  a  maple  which 
responds  to  kindness,  and  rewards  the  care-taker 
with  an  abundance  of  sugar  without  injury  to  its 
own  life.  There  are,  however,  careless  and  igno- 
rant farmers  who  bore  their  trees  in  several  places 
at  once,  or  out  of  season,  and  as  a  consequence  the 
exhausted  trees  die  sooner  or  later,  according  to  the 
measure  of  the  abuse.     To  tap  a  tree  in  threatening 

*  One  gallon  of  sap  yields  about  three  ounces  of  sugar.  Few 
trees  yield  more  than  thirty  gallons  of  sap,  if  the  tapping  is  properly 
done,  so  the  average  production  of  sugar  from  a  single  tree  is  about 
five  and  a  half  pounds:  but  in  many  instances  the  average,  \ 
find,  does  not  rise  over  four  and  a  quarter  pounds. 

f  On  a  large  estate  near  Stamford,  N.  Y.,  the  output  of  sugaL 
in  a  season  is  five  thousand  pounds. 


THE   MAPLES.  201 

or  stormy  weather,  or  before  the  temperate  genial 

warmth  which  is  usually  brought  by  the  south  wind, 
is  considered  by  some  sugar-makers  an  ill-advised  pro- 
ceeding: the  weather  must  be  neither  too  hot  nor  too 
cold  to  obtain  the  best  flow  of  sap. 

The  methods  employed  to-day  in  the  making  of 
sugar  are  quite  scientific  compared  with  those  in 
practice  twenty  years  ago.  A  patent  evaporator, 
with  an  infinite  length  of  trough  through  which  the 
sap  flows,*  now  takes  the  place  of  the  long  pan  over 
the  bricked-in  log  fire.  Also,  in  place  of  the  wooden 
tap  or  spout  for  the  tree,  a  new  galvanized  iron  one 
(which  does  not  clog  up  the  pores)  is  in  common  use. 
The  sap  is  evaporated  to  a  certain  point  in  the  pro- 
duction of  sirup,  and  it  passes  through  a  process  of 
still  greater  evaporation  in  the  making  of  sugar.f 
In  my  own  judgment,  the  sugar  made  by  the  old- 
fashioned,  boiling-down  method   possesses  the  high- 

*  The  passage  of  sap  through  the  trough  to  the  necessary  point 
of  evaporation  is  about  two  hours.  There  is  also  a  partitioned 
pan  now  in  use,  the  principle  of  which  is  similar  to  that  of  the 
evaporator. 

f  One  hundred  eight-quart  bucketfuls  of  sap  are  boiled  about 
sixteen  hours  in  the  production  of  sirup,  and  about  twenty  hours 
in  the  production  of  sugar.  The  test  is  made  by  stirring  and  cool- 
ing some  of  the  boiled  sap  in  a  saucer:  if  it  granulates  and  adheres 
to  the  spoon  and  saucer  the  process  is  completed ;  also,  some  of 
the  sap  is  dropped  on  snow  or  ice,  and  if  tins  becomes  "  like  glass," 
the  proper  point  is  reached. 


202       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


est  and  best  flavor ;  but  in  the  market  the  super- 
refined,  lighter-colored  sugar  made  by  the  patent 
evaporators  is  of  course  considered  much  finer,  and 
brings  a  higher  price.  The  best  sugar  brings  the 
New  Hampshire  farmer  rarely  more  than  eight  cents 
per  pound,  and  the  sirup  about  sixty  cents  per  gal- 
lon. The  retail  prices  even  in  country  towns  is 
frequently  over  fifty  per  cent  in  advance  of  these 
figures. 

Black  Sugar  Maple.  The  ^lack  sugar  maple  is  a  variety 
Acer  saccharinum,     of   the   common   sugar   maple,   with 

var.  niarum.  ■,.   ,.  .  -,  .  -■.«. 

Acerbarbatum,  n0    great    distinguishing    differences 

var.  nigrum,  excepting  that  the  leaf  is  often  fine- 
ly covered  with  down  un- 
derneath ;   it   usually  has 
three    lobes    (leaf    divi- 
sions) which  are  wider, 
shorter,    and  freer   of 
teeth,    and     the 
sides  of  the 
clefts      at 
the     base 
of  the  leaf  often 
Black  sugar  Maple.  ~        overlap.     The  bark 

of  the  tree  has  also  a  blackish  color,  and  the  seed 
wings,  set  wide  apart,  only  slightly  diverge. 


TIIK   MAPLES. 


203 


Silver  or  White  Maple.   The   silver   or   white    maple 
Acer  dasycarpum.       an    extremely    ornamental 

Acer  mccharvnum.  *> 

prettily  divided       y* 
and  toothed, 

which    could    not 
possibly    be     con- 
fused with  the 
leaves   of    the 
maples      already      de- 
scribed.    It  is  distinct- 
ly    silver  -  white     be- 
neath and  downv  when 
young;    its    live  divisions 
are    separated  by  deeply 
cut,  sharp  notches,    and  its 
teeth    are    very   variable    in 
size.      This   tree  should  not 
be    confused   with    the   red 
maple ;   the  latter 
has  a  leaf  which 
is     characteris- 
tically    three - 
lobed  —  that  is, 
it  impresses  one 
with     its    triple 
aspect,         even 

though  We    often  Silver  Maple. 


has 

leaf, 


204:       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

find  a  specimen  with  five  lobes.  Compare  my  draw- 
ings, and  this  difference  of  type  will  at  once  become 
apparent.  The  flowers,  which  precede  the  leaves,  are 
lio-ht  yellowish-lavender  ;  the  seeds  follow  some  time 
in  July ;  their  wings  are  large,  and  set  at  right  an- 


gles. 


This  maple  I  consider  remarkable  for   its  beau- 
tiful details ;  its  branches  are  long,  spread- 
ing, and  frequently  droop  enough  to 
serve  the  term  "  weeping  " — in  fact, 
certain  cut-leaved  and  weeping 
varieties  are  sold  by  the  nurs- 
erymen.     The    silver    maple 
is  most  common  along   river 
banks,    and  is  found    from 
Maine  to  western  Florida ; 
westward    it    extends   to   the 
Dakotas  and  Indian   Territo- 
ry.    Its  seeds,  taking  root   in 
sandy  river  margins,  quickly 

,     ,      „  ,,  "*•"    Cut-Leaf  Silver  Maple. 

sprout,  and  before  the  sum- 
mer is  done  the  budding  leaves  contribute  a  deli- 
cate ruddy  tint  to  the  monotonous  buff  of  the  sand. 
It  is  a  curious  fact  that  dying  leaves  are  often  stained 
with  the  same  ruddy  hues  in  which  they  appeared  at 
birth. 

The  silver  maple  grows  to  a  height  of  from  90  to 


m 


niK  maples. 


205 


12<>  feet,  but  commonly  it  does  not  exceed  50  feet. 

Its  wood  is  soft,  white,  and  of  little  value. 

Red  or  Swamp  Maple.    The    red    Or   swamp    maple,    a     tree 

Acerrubrum.  common  in  swamps  and  wet  woods, 

rarely    attains   a   height   of    over    50 
feet  in   the    North,  but    sometimes 
measures    80   to    120   feet    in  the 
South.      It   may  be    distinguished 
by  its  reddisli  brandies ;  the  twigs 
of    very    young  trees  are   bright, 
dark  red.*      The  leaf,  as  I  have  al- 
ready said,  is  characterized  by  three 
divisions,    although     one    may    fre- 
quently find  specimens  with  the  five 
points  distinctly  defined.     The  com- 
monest type    of    leaf    will   be  seen  in  the   drawing 
marked  Type  A. 

I  conclude  also  to  give  another  common  type 
which  may  frequently  be  seen  in  very  young  trees ; 
this  attenuated  outline  is  confusingly  near  that  of  the 
mountain  maple's  leaf ;  but  in  presenting  this  type  I 
do  so  to  call  attention  to  the  fact  that  Nature  does 
not  follow  cast-iron  rules,  however  we  mistake  the 
botanist's  descriptions  as  such.     What  we  choose  to 


Type 


*  The  branehlets  of  the  maples  are  apt  to  change  color  ut  dif- 
ferent seasons :  the  red  maple  is  brightest  red  during  the  winter; 

in  summer  the  twigs  become  brown  red. 


206       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR   LEAVES. 


call  Nature's  rules  are  really  general  principles  char- 
acterized by  a  remarkable  quality  of  elasticity.  I 
have  not  yet  found  a  botanist,  to  whom  I  had  occa- 
sion to  defer  some  difficult  specimen,  who  did  not 
preface  his  opinion  with  some  reference  to  this  elas- 
ticity. Now,  in  distinguishing  the  red  from  the 
mountain    maple   I   should    never    rely   wholly   on 

a  particular  leaf.     The  flowers  of 

the  red  maple  much  precede 

the   leaves   in    early   spring ; 

the     twigs    are    red,    not 

brown,  as  in  the 

mountain  maple ; 

the  wings  of   the 

seeds  only  slightly 

Attenuated  Leaf  of  Red  Maple.  diverge,       and     the 

leaf  is  whitish  underneath,  free  from  the  down  which 
characterizes  the  other  maple  (except,  perhaps,  at  the 
junction  of  the  veins),  and  it  turns  bright,  deep  red 
or  orange  in  autumn. 

The  drawing  of  the  long,  narrow  leaf  was  taken 
from  a  young  tree  which  grows  in  the  White  Moun- 
tains ;  that  of  the  typical  leaf  was  taken  from  an 
older  tree  in  the  Arnold  Arboretum  ;  and  that  of 
the  three-lobed  leaf  represents  a  specimen  belong- 
ing to  a  large  tree  at  Plymouth,  N.  H. 

The  red  maple  is  common  throughout  the  North, 


Til  K   MAPLES. 


207 


and  extends  southward  t<>  Florida  and  westward  to  the 

Dakotas  and  Texas;   it  is  one  of  the  very  earliesi 

trees  to  blossom  in  the  spring,  when 

it  assumes  a  ruddy  hue  by  reas 

of  the  red   flowers ;   in  autumn 

its  rich  red  foliage  again  dem- 

onstrates   tlie   right   of 


tlie  tree   to   its   name ; 
even  the  hard  wood  lias 
a  reddish  tinge  at  times, 
and  with  a  "  curled  "  grain 
it  is  considered  peculiarly 
handsome  in  cabinet  work. 

I  have  drawn  a  leaf  of 
the  beautiful  Norway  maple  {Acer 
platanoides)  so  that  we  may  com- 
pare it  with  that  of  our  own  su- 
gar maple ;  the  shapes  are  very 
similar.  Notice  the  extremely 
divergent  seed  wings  which  are 
characteristic  of  this  tree.  It  is  Red  Maple, 
a  handsome  maple,  very  round  Three  lobed  leaf' 
in  outline,  and  is  easily  distinguished  by  the  milky 
juice  which  is  best  seen  at  the  base  of  the  young- 
leaf.  It  is  becoming  very  common  in  our  Eastern 
cities.  My  drawing  was  taken  from  a  tree  which 
grows  in  Koxbury,  Mass.     Acer palmatum  is  a  beau- 


208       FAMILIAR  TREES   AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


tiful  dwarf  variety  of  the  maple  which  comes  from 
Japan  ;  it  is  not  infrequently  seen  in  our  city  parks. 
The  leaves  of  some  of  these  Japanese  maples  are  so 

slashed  and  rent  that  they 
like  a  fringe  from 
e  twigs.      Acer    ma- 
rophyllum  is  a  Cali- 
f  ornian  species,  with 
a     huge     leaf 
eight  to  twelve 
inches     broad, 
and  yellow,  fra- 
grant      flowers 
which  bloom  after  the 
have     expanded, 
ee    is    very  large, 
sometimes     reaching     a 
height  of  100  feet.      It 
is    not    hardy 
north   of    40° 
north  latitude. 

Norway  Maple. 

For    ash- 
leaved  maple  (Acer  negundo)  see  Chapter  XIX. 


CHAPTEE  XYII. 

III.  Compound  Alternate  Leaves. 

1.  Without  teeth.     Leaflets  bordering  main  leaf  stem. 

THE  AILANTUS  AND  LOCUSTS. 

Ailantus.  The  ailantus,*   familiar   to   us   all 

Ailanthus  gianduiosus.  through    its   greenish   flower  clus- 

Ailanthus  glandulosa.  .  . 

ters,  which  have  such  an  offensive 
odor  in  the  balmy  days  of  June,  comes  from  China, 
and  is  called  there  "  The  Tree  of  Heaven  "  !  For- 
tunately, not  all  the  trees  are  disagreeable,  as  some 
do  not  bear  the  ill-smelling,  sterile  (staminate)  flowers. 
The  ailantus  was  first  brought  into  the  United 
States  by  Mr.  William  Hamilton  in  1784,  and  a 
sucker  from  the  original  tree,  planted  in  1809,  de- 
veloped to  large  proportions,  now  stands  in  the  Bar- 
tram  Botanic  Garden.  In  1820  Mr.  William  Prince, 
of  Flushing,  L.  I.,  imported  the  ailantus  from 
Europe,    and    from    this    stock    most    of    the    tr 

*'•  Commonly,  but  improperly,  spelled  aila/nthw" — Webster, 

But  I  do  not  interfere  with  the  spelling  of  the  established  botan- 
ical names. 

15  209 


Ailantus. 


THE  AILANTUS  AND   LOCUSTS.  2U 

around  Xew  York   have  originated.     In    Washine- 
ton    Square   and   its    vicinity   during    the    "sixti< 
there    were    innumerable    trees,    winch     eventually 

became  so  offensive  because  of  their  odor  and  lia- 
bility to  be  attacked  by  the  abominable  brown 
"  inch  -  worm  '  *  that  most  of  them  were  cut 
down. 

But  the  tree  in  appearance  is  very  graceful;  its 
compound  leaves  have  stems  frequently  measuring 
three  feet  in  length;  the  base  of  the  stem  where  it 
joins  the  branch  is  swollen  so  that  it  resembles  in 
shape  a  miniature  horse's  hoof.  The  leaflet  is  sharp- 
pointed,  and  has  two  or  more  singular  dull  teeth  at 
the  base.  The  wTinged  seed  clusters,  which  somewhat 
remind  one  of  seaweed,  are  often  beautifully  pink- 
tinged,  but  generally  pale  green.  The  tree  is  in- 
clined to  spread  from  seed,  and  in  rubbish  heaps 
and  the  cracks  and  crannies  of  areas  around  old 
city  houses  we  may  frequently  see  its  youthful, 
fuzzy,  light-brown  stem  and  a  cluster  of  graceful 
leaflets.  The  tree  is  distinguished  in  the  absence 
of  its  leafage  by  its  coarse,  blunt  twigs  ;  these  do 
not  possess  the  delicacy  which  characterizes  those  of 
most  other  trees. 


*  I  believe  the  advent  into  this  country  of  the  English  Bparrow 
put  an  end  to  the  "  inch-worm  "  years  ago. 


912       FAMILIAR  TREES   AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


Yellowwood.        The  yellowwood  is  rather  a  rare  tree, 
ciadrastis  tinctoHa.  reaching  a  height  of  about  40  feet, 

Cladrastis  lutea.  •.-!_  n        •  i  i  ,,      ,       , 

with  yellowish    wood,   smootli  bark 
resembling  that  of  the  beech,  long,  beautiful,  light- 
green     leaflets,    and 
delicately     fragrant, 
cream-white  flowers 
which      bloom      in 
June  ;  these  hang  in 
graceful     clusters    a 
foot  or  more  in  length. 
The    pods,   which    are 
two   inches  long, 


are  ripe  in  the 
latter  part  of  Au- 
gust. The  tree 
is  found  wild  in  Kentucky 
and  Tennessee,  but  is  a 
much  more  familiar  object 
in  parks  and  gardens.  Its  re- 
semblance to  the  locust  bespeaks 
a  close  relationship  with  the  lat- 
ter tree.  There  is  a  beautiful  specimen  of  this  tree 
at  Dosoris,  L.  I.,  and  another  in  the  Phoenix  Nurs- 
ery, Bloomington,  111.* 

One  of  the  most  beautiful  and  symmetrical  yellow- 
wood  trees  I  have  ever  seen  is  on  the  grounds  of  the 


Yellowwood. 


THE  AILANTUS  AND   LOCUSTS. 


213 


late  Andrew  S.  Fuller,  at  Ridgewood,  N.  J. ;  it  was 
his  favorite  tree,  and  is  45  feet  high. 

Locust.  The  common  locust  lias  a  pretty  leaf 

BobiniaPseudacada.  spray  of  from  nine  to  twenty-three 
roundish  lonur  leaflets  which  are  devoid  of  teeth,  [ts 
twigs  are  not  sticky — that  is  the  most  impor- 
tant thing  to  remember  about  it.  Its  fra- 
grant wdiite  flowers,  shaped  like  pea-blos- 
soms, hang  in  loose  clusters  from  the 
sides  of  the  branchlets  in  late  spring 
or  early  summer.  The  flat  pods, 
about  two  or  three  inches  long, 
are  smooth,  of  a  purplish-brown 
color,  and  are  ripe  in  September. 
The  tree  is  slender  in  figure,  and 
reaches  a  height  of  from  35  to  80 
feet,  according  to  its  situation  and 
circumstances.  Its  exceedingly  hard  and  durable 
wood  has  a  yellowish  color  and  smooth  grain ;  it  is 
used  for  posts  and  exterior  construction  intended  to 
withstand  dampness.  The  tree  is  common  through- 
out the  eastern  United  States. 
Clammy  Locust.  The  clammy  locust  difl'ers  from  the 
Eobinia  viscosa.  common  locust  in  the  following  par- 
ticulars: the  tree  is  never  over  4<>  feet  high,  it-  dark- 
brown  twigs  are  very  sticky,  and  its  rather  upright 
flower  cluster  is  a  trifle  pinkish,  and   nearly   if   not 


Locust. 
Robinia  Pseudacacia. 


214      FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 


Clammy  Locust. 


quite  without  perfume.  The  tree  is  found  in  the 
mountains  from  Virginia  to  Georgia,  and  in  the 
North,  where   it   is   common   in   cultivation,  it  has 


THE  AILANTUS   AND   LOCUSTS. 


2 1 5 


frequently  escaped  to  roadsides  and  the  borders  of 
fields.  I  find  it  quite  common  in  Campton,  N.  II., 
on  either  side  of  a  road  which  passes  a  large  ceme- 
tery, where  there  are  several  handsome  trees  over  35 
feet  in  height. 

Kentucky  Coffee  Tree.  The  Kentucky  coffee  tree  is  tall, 
Gymnocladua  an(i  ]ias  coarse  "bart  extending  over 

Canadensis. 

Gymnodadusdioicus.  the  limbs,  stout  brauchlcts  like  the 
ailantus,  and  leaves  which  are  unequally  twice-com- 
pound ;  the  leaflets  are 
rather  broad  and 
sharp-pointed.  This 
doubling  up  of  the 
compound  character 
of  the  leaves  is  the 
sure  means  by  which 
we  may  recognize 
the  tree.  My  sketch, 
somewhat  convention- 
al in  arrangement, 
reveals  the  leaf  sys- 
tem at  a  glance.  The 
whole  spray  is  from 
two  to  three  feet  long  ;  the  leaflets  arc  without  teeth, 
and  are  dull,  dark  green.  The  brown,  curved  pods 
are  two  inches  broad,  and  from  six  to  ten  inches  long ; 
they  contain  hard,  gray  seeds  half  an  inch  in  diainc- 


Kentucky  CoflV*  Tic- 
Portion  of  double  compound  leaf. 


218       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

tor,  which  are  ripe  in  October.  The  tree  grows  from 
-15  to  80  and  occasionally  110  feet  high,  and  h..s  few 
branches.  In  the  South  its  seeds  were  at  one  time 
nsed  as  a  substitute  for  coffee.  In  the  Public  Garden, 
Boston,  not  far  from  the  path  leading  to  Newbury 
Street,  there  is  a  very  handsomely  proportioned  but 
rather  small  specimen  perhaps  40  feet  tall.  The 
Kentucky  coffee  tree  is  a  native  of  rich  woods,  and 
is  common  from  western  New  York  to  Minnesota 
a  id  Arkansas. 

Honey  Locust.       The   noneJ   locust    is   a   tree   which 

GieditscHa  boys   do  not   care  to   climb,  for  an 

tmacanthos.  0])Vi0US  reason .  its  murderous-look- 

ing  thorns,  which  grow  on  the  trunk  in  formidable 
bunches,  are  altogether  too  threatening  for  the  average 
juvenile  climber.  The  leaves  are  sometimes  twice 
compound,  but  not  very  often ;  they  suggest  a  sort 
of  toothed  edge,  but  so  indistinctly  that  the  fact 
would  escape  notice  unless  the  leaflet  was  subjected 
to  close  scrutiny.  The  inconspicuous  and  greenish- 
colored  flowers  appear  in  short  spikes  in  early  sum- 
mer;  the  long,  red-brown,  straplike,  twisted  pods 
ripen  in  late  autumn,  and  contain  most  remarkably 
hard,  shiny  brown,  flattened  seeds ;  the  pod  is  filled 
between  the  seeds  with  a  greenish-yellow,  sweet  pulp 
much  relished  by  the  "  small  boy,"  who  respects  the 
tree's  defenses,  and  waits  for  the  fruit  to  drop. 


THE   AILANTUS   AND   LOCUSTS. 


217 


Honey  Locust. 


218       FAMILIAR   TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

The  tree  is  very  large,  and  with  its  graceful,  fine 
foliage  presents  a  handsome  appearance  in  midsum- 
mer. Along  the  river  banks  of  Illinois  it  frequently 
attains  an  altitude  of  from  80  to  90  feet.*  It  is  a 
quite  rapid  grower,  and  a  seedling  will  reach  a  height 
of  18  or  more  feet  in  ten  years.  In  the  North  the 
leaves  unfold  about  the  middle  of  May. 

The  honey  locust  grows  wild  from  Pennsylvania 
southward  to  northern  Alabama  and  Texas  and  west- 
ward to  eastern  Nebraska.  There  are  two  varieties 
frequently  found  in  parks  and  gardens :  var.  inermis, 
without  thorns,  and  var.  Bujotii  pendula,  with  ex- 
ceedingly graceful,  drooping  foliage. 

Water  Locust.  The  water  locust  is  a  much  smaller 
Gleditschia  aquatka.  tree  than  the  honey  locust,  but  its 
general  character  is  the  same ;  it  usually  attains  a 
height  of  30  feet,  and  rarely  50  or  60  feet.  Com- 
pared with  the  other  locusts  its  leaflets  are  smaller, 
its  thorns  are  less  branched  and  more  slender,  and 
the  pod  is  very  short  (two  inches  long),  rounded,  and 
contains  rarely  more  than  one  seed,  and  no  sweet 
pulp.  It  is  found  in  the  swamps  of  southern  Illinois 
and  Indiana  and  southward,  but  is  frequently  planted 
in  the  North  for  ornament. 

*  Prof.  Sargent  records  its  maximum  height  at  140  feet. 


CIIAPTEK  XYIII. 

III.  Compound  Alternate  Leaves. 

2.  With  teeth.        Leaflets  bordering  main  leaf  stem. 

THE  SUMACH,  WALNUTS,  HICKORIES,  ETC. 

stag-horn  Sumach.  The  stag-horn  sumach  is  a  rugged- 
Rhus  typhina.  looking  shrub  or  tree  from  10  to  30 
and  occasionally  40  feet  high,  with  milky  juice  and 
remarkably  ruddy,  velvety  twigs  and  branches,  by 
means  of  which  it  may  readily  be  identified.  Kotice 
how  the  beautiful  compound  leaves  (composed  of 
from  eleven  to  thirty-one  leaflets,  very  pale  beneath) 
are  gracefully  set  around  the  smaller  branches  so  that 
each  is  out  of  its  neighbor's  way  and  does  not  ob- 
struct sunlight ;  they  change  from  a  lively  light  green 
in  August  to  a  most  beautiful  scarlet  red  in  Septem- 
ber. The  pyramidal  fruit  cluster  reveals  a  curious, 
red-haired  character  under  the  magnifying  glass,  and 
its  effective  red-maroon  patch  of  color  gives  the  tree 
a  most  picturesque  appearance  in  later  summer.     The 

graceful,  drooping  effect  of  the  leaflets,  and  the  bold, 

219 


220       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


tortuous  ramifications  of  the  upper  branches  place  the 
tree  in  sharp  contrast  with  its  surroundings ;  it  grows 

beside    almost     every    road    in   the 
Northern  States,  and  extends  south- 
ward    along    the    Alle- 
ghany Mountains  to  Al- 
abama.    In  autumn  I 
know  of  no  other  tree 
which  clothes  itself 
in  a  color  so  near- 
ly      approaching 
pure   scarlet,  and 
there  is  no  wood 
of  anv  other  tree 
which    seems    to 
me       quite       so 
green    -    yellow. 
Gray  calls  it  or- 
ange-colored, but 


it    is    rather    that 
peculiar  citron  hue 
which  may  be  pro- 
duced by  mixing  or- 
ange   and    green  ;    a 
daub  of  this  color  from 
my  paint  brush  exactly 
stag-horn  sumach,      matches  the  wood,  but  anoth- 


THE  SUMACH,   WALNUTS,    HICKORIES,   ETC.  221 

er  of  orange  cadmium  is  in  strong  contrast  with  it. 
In  the  Catskill  Mountains  sumach  woo.  I  is  used  hv 
the  turners  in  making  walking  sticks,  boxes,  and  a 
variety  of  ornamental  knickknacks.  It  is  a  pity  the 
tree  does  not  grow  sufficiently  large  to  furnish  wood 
available  for  cabinet  work. 

The  stag-horn  sumach,  common  throughout  the 
North  (its  southern  limit  is  northern  Georgia),  is  t<>o 
familiar  an  object  on  our  byways  and  hillsides  to 
need  any  leaf  description  here,  and  I  would  rather 
call  attention  to  it  as  one  of  our  most  beautiful, 
picturesque,  but  unappreciated  roadside  characters, 
whose  brilliant  coloring  in  autumn  is  unexcelled 
even  by  the  maple.  We  must  not  confuse  it  with 
the  vicious  poison  sumach  {Rhus  venenata)?  whose 
leaflet  is  loithout  teeth,  and  whose  fruit  is  a  greenish- 
white  berry  about  the  size  of  a  pea. 

The  smoke  tree  {Rhus  cotinoidei)\  is  a  small  tree 
from  25  to  40  feet  high,  which  is  a  near  relative  of 
the  sumach,  but  which  is  quite  out  of  place  here  in 
this  division  of  my  leaf  classification,  for  it  has  a 
simple,  plain-edged  leaf,  oval,  thin,  and  smooth,  or 
nearly  so;  it  measures  from  three  to  six  inches  in 
length.     Usually  most  of   the  flowers   are  abortive, 


*  Also  called  Jthus  vernix—C.  S.  Sargent. 

f  Also  called  Cotinvs  Americana. — C.  &  Sargt  nt. 


222       FAMILIAR  TREES   AND   THEIR  LEAVES 


Mountain  Ash. 


THE  SUMACH,   WALNUTS,   HICKORIES,   ETC.  223 

while  their  stems  lengthen,  branch,  ami  bear  Long, 
plumy  hairs,  making  large,  light,  and  feathery  or 
cloudlike   bunches,  either   greenish   gray   or   ruddy 

tinned. *     The  smoke  tree  grows  wild  from  Missouri 
and  Tennessee  southward.     It  is  rarely  cultivated. 
Mountain  Ash.      The  beautiful  mountain  ashf — which 

Pyrus  Americana,      is,    of    COUrse,    no    ash    at    all,    hilt    a 

charming  relative  of  the  apple  and  pear — has  a  con- 
ventional, compound  leaf,  which  would  lead  one  to 
suppose  (if  superficial  appearances  counted  for  any- 
thing) that  it  was  related  to  the  sumach.  This  is  not 
the  case,  however,  and  a  comparison  of  the  charac- 
ters of  the  two  plants  shows  wide  differences.  The 
sharply  toothed  leaflets,  thirteen  to  seventeen  on  a 
stem,  are  nearly  if  not  perfectly  smooth,  as  well  as 
the  stem  itself  and  the  branchlets.  The  berries  are 
bright  red,  about  the  size  of  peas,  and  they  appear 
in  their  richest  coloring,  great  flat  clusters  of  them, 
in  the  latter  part  of  September.  They  remain  on 
the  branches  into  the  winter.  The  grooved  leaf  stem 
in  the  early  autumn  often  assumes  a  bright-red  hue, 
and  the  trunk  bark  is  a  dull,  raw  umber  brown  ; 
when  it  is  cut  or  bruised  it  smells  like  that  of 
the  wild  black  cherry — not    so   surprising,    in    view 

*  Vide  Field,  Forest,  and  Garden  Botany,  Gray, 
f  Sometimes  called  the  rowan  tree. 


224       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR   LEAVES. 

of  the  fact   that    the    latter   tree  is   a  family   rela- 
tion. 

This  slender  and  graceful  tree,  which  grows  from 
15  to  30  feet  high,  is  common  in  swamps  and  cold 
mountain  woods  throughout  the  Northern  States  from 
Maine  to  Minnesota ;  southward  it  follows  the  Alle- 
ghany Mountains  to  North  Carolina.  It  is  very 
frequently  seen  in  the  vicinity  of  Lake  George,  and 
on  .the  higher  peaks  of  the  White  Mountains,  and 
I  found  it  at  every  step  beside  the  steep  path 
which  ascends  Mount  Cannon,  in  the  Franconia 
Notch.  In  the  struggle  for  existence  at  an  alti- 
tude of  three  thousand  five  hundred  feet  it  did 
not  attain  a  height  of  over  4  feet.  The  elder- 
leaved  mountain  ash  (Pyrus  sambucifolia),  found 
also  in  the  higher  mountains  of  the  northern  part 
of  New  England  and  westward  to  Lake  Superior, 
has  more  obtuse  and  abruptly  sharp^ointed  leaves, 
usually  double-toothed.  The  berries  are  larger  but  the 
clusters  are  smaller  than  those  of  the  other  variety. 
Butternut.  The  butternut,  sometimes  called  oil 
Juyians  cinerea.  nut,  is  very  common  in  New  Eng- 
land and  the  extreme  Northern  States  ;  it  extends 
westward  to  the  eastern  Dakotas,  eastern  Nebraska,  and 
northeastern  Arkansas,  and  southward  to  Delaware 
and  through  the  Alleghany  Mountains  to  Georgia. 
I  can  hardly  call  it  a  beautiful  tree,  as  its  foliage  is 


THE   SUMACH,   WALNUTS,    BICKORIES,    ETC.   225 


sparse,   its   rough,  gray   limbs   are   scraggy,   and    its 
figure  lacks  symmetry.     It  grows  from  30  to  50  and 

occasionally   100  feet   high.      In 
the    pasture    lands    among  the 
hills  of  New  Hampshire  it  fre- 
quently   attains    a   tall,    broad, 
and   imposing  figure,   which  is 
often       unfortunately 
marred  by  gaunt,  dead 
branches. 

The         compound 
leaves  are  composed  of  from 
nine    to    seventeen    leaflets, 
which   are  rather   un- 


evenly    toothed     and 
fuzzy  -  stemmed  ;    the 
base    of    the    stem    is 
conspicuously     horse- 
hoof -shaped.      In    the  early 
part    of     the    season    the 
branchlets   are  very  fuzzy 
and   sticky.     The   fruit, 
two   to   three  inches 
long,     is     at     first 


Butternut. 


downy,  green,  and 
stickv ;  on  bein<? 
bruised  it  stains  the  fingers  a  deep  yellow.     The  nut 


16 


226       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

is  ripe  in  October,  when  the  husk  is  black  brown ;  it 
is  sharply  rough,  and  the  kernel,  greatly  relished  by 
the  squirrels,  is  sweet  but  very  oily. 

The  butternut  is  one  of  the  first  trees  to  lose  its 
leaves  in  the  fall.     After  a  heavy  night  frost  in  early 

October,     on    the    following 

morning    one    will    see    the 

leaves,  stem  and  all,  silently 

we*^  drop  one  after  another,  until 

Butternut  in  husk.  m    the    courge    0f   ^    flay  the 

branches  are  almost  completely  stripped  of  their  fo- 
liage. The  leaves  turn  a  bright  yellow  not  long  be- 
fore they  fall.  In  summer  the  general  effect  of  the 
tree  is  yellowish  green,  and  in  spring  the  late-arriv- 
ing, green -yellow,  budding  leaves  combine  with  the 
gray  bark  of  the  branches  in  forming  a  most  pe- 
culiar but  beautiful  combination  of  color.*  The 
hard,  strong-grained,  beautiful,  light  yellow-brown 
wood  makes  a  handsome  interior  finish,  and  is  highly 
esteemed  by  the  cabinetmaker. 
Black  Walnut.  The  black  walnut  is  esteemed  so 
jugians  nigra.  highly  f or  its  rich,  dark-brown  wood, 
that  in  recent  years  woodcutters  have  made  it  very 
scarce.     It  is  claimed  that  one  hundred  years  are  re- 


*  In  March  the  tree  is  often  tapped  with  the  sugar  maple,  but 
I  know  nothing  of  the  quality  of  the  sugar  which  is  made.  I  am 
told  that  it  has  some  medicinal  properties. 


£\ 


BLACK  WALNUT. 

The  Hedges,  Bucks  Co  ,  Penn. 


THE  SUMACH,   WALNUTS,   BICKORIES,   ETC.   227 


quired  for  this  tree  (in  the  forest)  to  attain  a  suffi- 
cient size  to  make  it  valuable  for  timber ;  yet  in 
twenty-five  years'  time  its  destruction  has  steadily 
proceeded  until  it  has  been  almost  exterminated  in 
the  Mississippi  basin,  and  vast  tracts  of  forest  land 
have  been  bereft  of 
nearly  every  speci- 
men considered  val- 
uable for  its  tim- 
ber. I  am  told  by 
a  gentleman  who  is 
connected  with  the 
lumber  interest  of 
this  country  that  in- 
dividual valuable  trees 
are  bought  "  on  the 
stump"  by  the  lum- 
ber companies  in  all 
accessible  forest  re- 
gions. 

The  black  walnut 
is  found  from  western  Massachusetts  to  central  Ne- 
braska and  eastern  Kansas,  and  it  extends  southward 
to  western  Florida  and  Texas.  It  was  mice  very 
plentiful  in  the  forest  regions  west  of  the  Alleghany 
Mountains,  where  it  attained  its  largest  growth. 
There  are  a  few  large  specimens  in   Massachusetts. 


Black  Walnut,  portion  of  leaves. 


228       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

i 
one   of   which,  at  West  Medford,  has  a  trunk   cir- 
cumference of  about  fourteen  feet  at  five  feet  above 
the   ground  ;   another,    at    Saugus   (Centre   Village), 
measures  60  feet  in  height. 

The  compound  leaf  is  composed  of  from  fifteen  to 
twenty-three  sharp-toothed  leaflets  on  a  stem  (with- 
out the  horse-hoof  base)  which  measures  one  to  two 
feet  in  length.  The  leaf*  is  thin,  bright  yellow 
green  above  and  somewhat  downy  beneath ;  it  turns 
yellow  in  autumn.  The  splendid,  large  fruit  is 
rough,  dull  green,  and  generally  round  ;  it  has  a 
pleasant,  aromatic  odor.  The  nut,  after  the  ripened 
blackish  husk  is  removed,  reveals  a  dark-brown, 
sharply  cut,  rough,  hard  shell ;  the  kernel  has  a 
delicate  but  decided  flavor. 

The  English  walnut  (Juglans  regia)  is  sparingly 
cultivated  in  this  country,  but  it  is  barely  hardy  in 
the  North.  It  has  from  five  to  nine  ovate,  pointed, 
unevenly  toothed  leaflets  which  crowd  the  stem,  and 
a  thin -shelled  nut  which  the  husk,  becoming  brittle 
and  open,  soon  sheds.  The  nut  is  the  common  Ma- 
deira nut  of  commerce.  The  tree  grows  from  35  to 
60  feet  high. 


*  I  am  told  that  in  Bucks  County,  Pa.,  the  leaves  are  often 
stripped  from  the  tree  by  caterpillars ;  in  the  White  Mountains 
the  trees  are  remarkably  free  from  them  ;  probably  a  winter 
temperature  of  30°  below  zero  is  a  trifle  too  strong  for  some 
worms. 


cat  .?>**% 

■ 


HICKORY  OR  SHAGBARK. 

Near  Boston,  Mass. 


A 


THE  SUMACH,   WALNUTS,   BICKORIES,   ETC.   229 

Hickory  or  Shagbark.    Tlie      hickory,      sometimes      called 
Caryaalba.  shagbark     or    shellbark,    is    ;i    tall, 

spreading  tree  <<>  to  90  and  occa- 
sionally, in  the  forest,  120  feet  high.  It  usually  has  a 
straight  trunk  with  gray  bark  loosely  attached,  which 
hangs  in  strips  nearly  a  foot  long  and  six  inches  wide  ; 
the  ends  of  these  strips  frequently  curve  away  from 
the  trunk,  and  give  it  the  rugged  appearance  which 
accounts  for  the  name  "  shagbark."  The  younger 
brandies  are  smooth  and  light  gray.  As  a  rule, 
there  are  but  five  sharp-toothed  leaflets  on  a  stem 
(sometimes  there  are  seven),  and  these  are  from  four 
to  eight  inches  long;  they  are  rather  thin,  and  dark 
yellowish  green ;  the  leaf  stem  is  rough,  and  some- 
what enlarged  at  the  base.  The  fruit,  which  is  ripe 
in  October,  has  a  thick,  hard  husk,  which  splits  into 
four  separate  sections ;  the  whitish  nut,  slightly  flat- 
tened at  the  sides,  has  a  thin  wall,  and  a  large,  bwi 
kernel  which  I  consider  superior  in  flavor  to  any 
other  American  nut. 

This  hickory  is  the  commonest  of  the  species  in 
the  North;  it  extends  from  Maine  to  central  Minne- 
sota and  southeastern  Nebraska;  southward  it  fol- 
lows along  the  Alleghany  Mountains  (on  their  west- 
ern slopes,  and  in  the  Ohio  basin  it  attains  its  largest 
size),  and  reaches  its  limit  in  western  Florida  and 
Texas. 


230      FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 


Shagbark  Hickory. 


THE  SUMACH,   WALNUTS,    BICKORIES,    ETl 


The  brownish-white  wood  is  exceedingly  tough 
and  hard,  and  is  much  used  in  the  manufacture  of 
carriages,  agricultural  implements,  axe  handles,  and 
farm  wagons.     The  handsome,   clear  green    foliage 

and  the  symmetrical  proportions  of  the  Bhagbark 
hickory  make  it  an  impressive  tree  of  exceptional 
beauty.  There  is  a  most  stately  and  picturesque 
tree,  over  50  feet  high,  on  the  land  of  Mr.  Augustus 
Fowler,  at  Danvers,  Mass. 
Big  Shellbark.  The  big  shellbark  differs  from  the 
Carya  sulcata.       foregoing  species  in  the  fol- 

Hicoria  laciniosa.      ]owmg      particulars  * 

There   are   usually    seven    leaflets 
(sometimes   there   are  nine)  which 
are  more  downy  and  of  a  bronze - 
green  hue  beneath  ;   above,  they 
seem  to  me  to  be  a  deeper  green. 
The  young  branchlets  are  somewhat 
orange-colored.      The  nut  is  much 
larger  (from  an  inch  and  a  quarter 
to  nearly  two   inches  long),  and  it 
is   usually    pointed   at    both    ends. 
The   strips  of    bark    are   narrower. 
This  hickory  is  rather  rare  and  lo- 
cal, and  extends  from  Bucks  Coun- 
ty,   Pa.,    and    central    Now    York 
westward  to  Missouri  and  Indian  Territory. 


BiK  Shellbark,  ■  leaflet; 

nut  show  Ing  sharp 

point  at  the  base, 


232       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 

Mockernut.        ^ne  mockernut  is  a  tall,  slender  tree 
Carya  tomentosa.     from  70  to  100  feet  high,  with  light 

gray,  close  bark  which  does  not  scale 
off.  There  are  from  seven  to  nine  blunt-toothed 
leaflets  on  a  stem,  which  are  deep  yellow  green 
above  and  somewhat  paler  and  rough 
downy  below ;  they  are  very  fragrant 
when  bruised.  The  large,  thick- 
shelled,  brownish  nut  has  a  thick 
husk  which  splits  nearly  to  the  base 
when  it  is  ripe ;  the  kernel  is  small 
and  indifferently  flavored.  Probably 
the  tree  gets  its  name  from  the  out- 
ward promise  of  the  nut,  which  the 
small  kernel  fails  to  fulfill. 

The  mockernut  is  found  on  ridges 
and  hillsides  from  New  England  south- 
Mockernutin husk  ward  to  F]orida  and  Texas;   westward 

and  a  leaflet. 

it  extends  to  eastern  Kansas  and  In- 
dian Territory  ;  it  is  common  in  the  South,  but 
rather  local  and  rare  in  the  North. 

Pignut  ^ne  pi&nu*>  sometimes  called  broom 

Carya  porcina.      hickory,*  is  a  gracefully  proportioned 

Hicoria  glabra.        tree   from   6Q  tQ    qq  and   occasionaHy 


*  It  is  said  that  the  early  settlers  used  the  wood  split  into  thin, 
narrow  strips  for  brooms. 


THE  SUMACH,   WALNUTS,   BICKORIES,    ETC.   233 


Pignut 


234       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   TIIEIR  LEAVES. 

120  feet  high.  Its  sharp-toothed  leaflets  grow  from 
five  to  nine  on  a  stem  (usually  seven,  and  rarely 
nine) ;  they  are  smooth  above  and  below,  but  some- 
times tufts  of  pale  hairs  will  be  discovered  at  the 
angles  of  the  ribs  ;  the  leaf  color  is  a  rich,  deej:>,  yel- 
low green.  The  fruit  has  a  very  thin  husk,  and  is 
somewhat  pear-shaped  or  else  oval ;  the  husk  often 
splits  open  only  at  the  apex,  and  falls  with  the  nut  to 
the  ground.  The  kernel  is  at  first  sweet,  then  after- 
ward bitter.  The  fruit  from  which  my  drawing  was 
made  measured  scarcely  one  inch  in  length ;  not  in- 
frequently, however,  larger  specimens  are  found.* 

The  pignut  is  distributed  from  Maine  to  south- 
eastern Nebraska,  southward  to  Florida,  and  along 
the  Gulf  States  to  Kansas  and  Texas.  It  is  very 
common  on  hillsides  and  dry  ridges  in  all  the  North- 
ern States. 
Small-fruit  Hickory.  The  small-fruit  hickory  bears  a  small 

Carya  microcarpa.        lmt    ^{fo    a    ft^    \ms],    wnich    splits 

Hicoria  glabra, 

var.  odorata.  open  nearly  to  the  base  ;  the  smooth- 
shelled  nut  is  roundish  and  free  from  angles  ;  in 
some  instances  it  is  hardly  more  than  half  an  inch 
deep.     The  kernel  is  very  sweet. 

There  are  usually  five  (often  seven)  leaflets  on  a 

*  In  the  Silva  of  North  America,  Prof.  Sargent  says  Hicoria 
glabra  varies  more  in  the  size  and  shape  of  its  fruit  than  any  other 
of  the  hickories. 


TflE  SUMACH,   WALNUTS,    BICKORIBS,    ETC.    235 


stem;  they  are  fine-toothed,  and  very  smooth  above 
and  below,  except  that  the  angles  of  the  ribs  are 
apt  to  be  a  triiic  fuzzy.  This  hickory  (considered 
by  Prof.  Sargent  a  variety  of  the  foregoing  species) 
grows  from  60  to  90  feet  high,  and  is  found  from 
eastern  Massachusetts  to  Delaware,  and  from  New 
York  westward  to  central  Michigan,  southern  Illi- 
nois, and  Missouri.  The  bark  is  somewhat  shag 
but  separates  in  narrow,  thin  plates. 

The  bitternut,  or  swamp  hickory,  is 
Bitternut,  or  .  . 

Swamp  Hickory,  a   large   tree  with    spreading    limbs, 

Caryaamara.  which    is    f 01111(1     ill    low,    wet    Woods 

Hkoria  minima.  - 

and  swamps;  it  grows  irom  .><>  to 
75  and  occasionally  100  feet 
high.  There  are  from  seven 
to  eleven  narrow  leaflets  on 
a  slender  stem ;  these  are 
smooth  on  both  sides,  or  very 
slightly  downy  beneath,  es- 
pecially when  young.  The 
fruit  is  roundish,  and  the  rath- 
er soft,  thin  husk  separates 
down  to  about  the  middle ;  the 
thin-shelled,  whitish  nut  is  de- 
pressed at  the  top,  and  has  an 
extremely  bitter  kernel,  which  was  at  first  sweet 
The  husk  and  nutshell  are  thinner  than  those  of  the 


Bitternut,  ]><>rti"n  <>f  leaf. 


236       FAMILIAR   TREES  AND   TIIEIR  LEAVES. 

other  species,  and  they  may  be  broken  with  a  very 
slight  blow. 

The  swamp  hickory  is  distributed  from  Maine  to 
Minnesota  and  southeastern  Nebraska ;  southward  it 
extends  to  Florida  and  eastern  Texas.  The  bark  of 
the  trunk  is  rather  smooth  and  close. 

Pecan  Nut.  ^ne  Pecan  nu*  *s  a  Southern  species 

Carya  olivceformis.    of  hickory,  which  grows  from  80  to 

Hicoria  pecan.         1Q()    ^    occagionaUy    tf0   feet   WgL 

There  are  from  nine  to  fifteen  leaflets  on  a  stem; 
these  are  finely  toothed  and  slender-pointed, 
and  of  a  warm,  deep  yellow-green  color. 
The  fruit,  about  an  inch  and  a  half  long, 
has  a  thin,  yellow-haired  husk  which 
splits  in  four  sections  nearly  to  the  base, 
and,  discharging  the  nut,  not  infre- 
quently remains  on  the  branch  through 
the  winter.  The  smooth,  thin-shelled 
nut  has  a  very  sweet  kernel,  and  is 
considered  by  many  the  best  flavored 
Pecan  Leaflet,   of  all  nuts,  native  or  foreign. 

The  tree  is  a  rapid  grower,  and  it 
will  produce  a  small  amount  of  fruit  at  the  end  of 
its  eighth  or  tenth  year.  It  is  the  largest  of  the 
hickory  trees,  and  grows  in  rich  soil  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  streams  from  Iowa,  southern  Illinois  and 
Indiana  to  Louisiana  and  Texas  ;  it  also  extends  into 


THE  SUMACH,   WALNUTS,    HICKORIES,    ETC.   237 

central  Mississippi  and  Alabama.  Mo  I 
of  the  nuts  in  the  market  come  from 
Texas,  but  of  late  years  orchards  of  se- 
lected varieties  of  the  pecan  nut  have 
been  planted  in  many  of  the  Southern 
States.*      It   is   one  of   the  most  impos- 

i  •  can  mil  in 

ing  and  beautiful  trees  of  the  South.  husk. 

*  Vide  Silva  of  North  America,  C.  S.  Sargent. 


J 


CHAPTEE  XIX. 

Compound  Opposite  Leaves. 

With  or  without  teeth.     Leaflets  bordering  main  leaf  stem. 

THE  ASH-LEAVED  MAPLE  AND  THE  ASHES. 

There  are  odd  trees  as  well  as  odd  people  in  the 
world,  whose  characters  are  problems  somewhat  dif- 
ficult of  solution.  A  man  can  tell  who  he  is,  but  a 
tree  only  reveals  its  individuality  by  certain  little  dif- 
ferences which  distinguish  it  from  others  of  its  kind. 
When  these  differences  assume  a  contradictory  aspect 
we  are  put  to  some  confusion.  "  From  your  speech," 
said  one  traveler  to  another,  guessing  at  the  latter's 
nationality,  "  I  judge  you  are  an  Englishman ;  from 
your  carriage  and  quickness  of  perception,  I  imagine 
you  are  an  American ;  but  your  physiognomy  be- 
speaks a  German  nationality."  "  Not  right,"  said 
the  other ;  "  for  my  mother  was  Dutch,  I  was  born 
in  Paris,  reared  and  educated  in  Boston,  and  the  last 
three  years  of  my  life  have  been  spent  in  London." 
One  of  the  maples  is  quite  as  problematic  in  its  out- 
side appearance. 

238 


THE  ASH-LEAVED   MAPLE   AND  THE  ASHES.  239 

Where  or  how  the  ash-leaved  maple 

Ash-leaved  Maple  l 

or  Box  Elder.        spent    the   first  years   of   it-  existence 

Key  undo  act  n>  id,  s.      nobody    knows.      The     tree     call     not 
Acer  ney undo. 

account  for  itself,  but  that  it  has 
puzzled  more  than  one  botanist  its  various  name- 
assuredly  testify.  Some  one  lias  thought  it  looked 
sufficiently  like  the  elder  to  name  it  box  elder.* 
Another  has  seen  the  strong  resemblance  of  its  foli- 
age to  that  of  the  ash,  and  named  it  ash-leaved  maple  : 
and,  finally,  Prof.  Sargent  (following  Michaux'e  initia- 
tive) has  sifted  the  qualifying  aceroldes  down  to  plain 
Acer  f — a  common-sensible  conclusion,  it  seems  to 
me,  if  one  will  look  at  the  perfectly  plain  family 
signature,  the  double-winged  seed4  "  By  their  fruits 
ye  shall  know  them."  This  really  ought  to  be  the 
text  of  one  who  is  in  search  of  the  real  character  of  a 
tree ;  we  can  tell  a  great  deal  about  that  by  the 
leaves,  but  when  there  is  a  shadow  of  doubt  we  must 
turn  to  the  fruit.  The  leaf  of  the  ash-leaved  maple 
has  three  or  five  slightly  rough,  strong-ribbed  leaflets, 
the  outer  edges  of  which  are  irregularly  and  coarsely 

*  Michaux  says  this  name  was  commonly  used  in  the  I  'arolinas, 
so  he  adopted  it  also,  although  it  was  without  any  particular  .sig- 
nificance. 

f  Which  is  the  name  given  by  the  younger  Michaux, 
\  My  expressed  opinion  is,  perhaps,  presumptuous ;  it   i*-  sim- 
ply a  case  of  ipse  dixit  !     Many  of  the  botanists  believe   that 
Negundo  aceroidesis  essentially  different  from  the  genua  Acer, 


240       FAMILtAR  TREES  AND  THEIR   LEAVES. 


toothed.    The  fruit  ripens  in  early  summer,  and  hangs 
in  graceful  yellowish -green  clusters  from  six  to  eight 

inches  long.     The  newer  twigs  are 

a  beautiful  pea 
green. 

This  tree  is 
found  from 
the  Winooski 
River,  Yt., 
and  the  Ver- 
mont shore  of 
Lake  Champlain  to 
Cayuga  Lake,  N.  Y. 
Southward  it  extends 
through  eastern  Penn- 
sylvania to  Florida, 
and  westward  to  the 
Rocky  Mountains  in 
Montana,  the  Wah- 
satch  Mountains  in 
Utah,  and  western  Texas. 
The  ash-leaved  maple  is  a  handsome,  rapidly  grow- 
ing tree  with  wide-spreading  branches,  which  some- 
times reaches  a  height  of  70  feet  ;  usually  it  is 
from  30  to  50  feet  high.  The  foliage  is  deep  green 
and  very  ornamental.  It  is  said  to  be  not  long- 
lived,  as  it  arrives  at  maturity  in  fifteen  or  twenty 


Ash-leaved  Maple. 


THE  ASH-LEAVED   MAPLE   AND   THE   ASHES.  241 

years.*  There  arc  specimens  of  this  tree  on  the 
Schuylkill  River  and  in  the  vicinity  of  Philadelphia 
which  measure  50  feet  in  height,  and  have  a  trunk 

circumference  of  four  feet. 

White  Ash.  The    white    ash    is    one  of    the   QO- 

Fraxinus  Americana,    ^\est    Qf     our    forest    trees,     and    One 

which  is  second  only  to  •  the  oak  in  value  for  its 
timber.  This  stately  tree  measures  60  <>r  7<>  and 
sometimes  100  or  120  feet  in  height.  In  the  forest 
its  rather  slim  upright  branches  usually  reach  far 
above  those  of  its  neighbors.  Its  compound  leaf 
(eight  to  twelve  inches  long)  is  composed  of  from 
five  to  nine  (usually  seven)  leaflets;  these  are  deep 
green,  smooth  above,  and  pale,  silvery  green  below, 
with  a  trifle  of  down  on  the  ribs  ;  the  teeth  are 
very  indistinct,  or  else  the  leaf  edge  is  quite  unbro- 
ken. The  leaf  stem  is  smooth  and  grooved,  and 
the  leaflet  steins  are  quite  a  quarter  of  an  inch 
long.  The  tall,  heavy  trunk  on  large  specimens  is 
gray,  with  deep  intersecting  furrows  which  cut  the 
bark  into  short  ridges. 

The  ash  is  one  of  the  latest  trees  to  unfold  its 
leaves  in  the  spring,  and  in  autumn,  after  the  first 
severe  frost,  they  blacken  and  fall  to  the  ground; 


*  Vide  Trees  and  Tree-Planting,  .1.  S.  Brisbin.     Bui   I  am  in- 
clined to  doubt  this.    A  box  elder  I  know  ol  owr  twentj  \ 

old,  still  shows  signs  of  development. 
17 


242       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

tliis,  however,  is  after  they  have  turned  a  soft  yellow 
somewhat   modified   by   spots    of    persistent    green. 


White  Ash. 


The  winged  seeds  are  dainty,  narrow,  wedge-shaped 
little  things  about  an  inch  and  a  half  long.     They 


THE  ASH-LEAVED   MAPLE   AND   THE   ASHES.  243 

hang  in  loose  clusters,  and  frequently  remain  od  the 
bare  branches  until  the  middle  of  winter. 

The  ash  is  a  rapid-growing  tree,  which  in  thirty 
years  from  the  time  of  planting  will  attain  a  height 
of  40  feet  and  a  trunk  diameter  of  sixteen  inches. 
It  is  distinctively  an  inhabitant  of  the  forest,  and  it 
likes  rich,  moist,  cool  soil.  It  is  found  from  New 
England  to  northern  Minnesota;  southward  it  ex- 
tends to  northern  Florida,  and  from  there  westward 
to  Indian  Territory,  Kansas,  and  centra] 
Texas.  The  hard,  tough  wood  has  a 
handsome  grain,  and  it  is  extensively 
used  for  the  interior  finish  of  houses, 
for  furniture,  carriages,  agricultural 
implements,  and  oars. 

Bed  Ash.  The     red    asl1     is    a 

Fraxinus  smaller  species,  which 

Pennsulvartica.  r  A  n 

J  grows    irom   40 

to  60  feet  high,  and  is  dis- 
tinguished by  the  velvety 
hairiness  of  its  leaf 
stems  and  branehlets. 
From  seven  to  nine 
leaflets  orow  on  the 
slightly  grooved  stem;  they  are  indistinctly  toothed, 
light  green  above  and  pale  green  below,  covered  with 
downy  hairs.     The  seed  is  rather  blunt-tipped. 


Red  Ash. 


244      FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

Probably  the  red  ash  owes  its  name  to  the  ruddy 
color  on  the  inner  surface  of  the  rough  outer  bark  on 
the  branches ;  but  I  have  also  noticed  that  the  very 
young  shoots  have  a  decidedly  ruddy  or  rusty  colored 
downy  surface. 

The  red  ash  is  found  in  low,  rich,  moist  soil  from 
Maine  to  eastern  Kebraska  and  the  Black  Hills  of  the 
Dakotas ;  southward  it  extends  to  northern  Florida 
and  central  Alabama.  West  of  the  Alleghany  Moun- 
tains the  tree  is  less  common  and  smaller 
than  it  is  in  the  East. 

Green  Ash.         The  green   ash  is  consid- 
Fmxinus  viridis.       ered  by  Prof.  C.  S.  Sar- 

Fraxiaus  .  „        n 

Permsyivaniea,  gent    a    variety    ot     the 
var.  lanceoiata.       foregoing   species.       The 

branchlets,  leaves,    and   stems    are    quite 
smooth,  without  any  downiness  except  a 
very  slight  amount  sometimes  found  in  the 
angles  of  the  ribs  on  the  under  side  of  the 
leaflets ;    there   are  five   to   nine   of   these, 
seed  of  the  anc[  they  are   distinctly  toothed  and  some- 

GreenAsh.  J  * 

what  narrowed  at  the  base ;  the  color  is 
bright  green  above  and  a  very  slightly  paler  green 
below. 

The  green  ash  is  distributed  from  the  eastern 
shore  of  Lake  Champlain  through  the  Appalachian 
region    to    northern   Florida,   and    throughout    the 


THE  ASH-LEAVEP   MAPLE   AND   THE   ASHES.  245 


\Yest.*     It  rarely  attains  a  height  of  more  than  30 
35  feet.     Its  beautiful  deep-green  leaves,  nearly  the 

same  color  on  either  side,  make  it  a  handsome  and 
ornamental  tree  deserving  more  extensive  cultivation, 
partic- 


ularly 
as  it  is  a 
id  grower 
the  Western    cit- 
ies it  is  common 
streets  and 

Blue 

Fra/xinvA 
quadra 

rather     square    branchlets,    at 

least  on    young   and   vigorous 

shoots,    so   says    Gray  ;    but  I 

do  not  find    that   the   average 

blue  ash  tree  has  this  marked 

characteristic;  of  course,  this  is  due  to  the  fact  that 

the  older  branchlets  have  become  round.     The  bine 

ash  is  a  large  Western  species  which  grows  from   60 

to  70  feet,  and  sometimes  100  or  even   1l'<>   feet  high. 

*  East  of  the  Mississippi  River  the  red  and  green  ashes  grow 
side  by  side,  and  retain  their  individual  character;  but  in  the 
West  they  are  connected  by  intermediate  forms  which  can  !"•  re- 
ferred to  one  as  well  as  the  other. — Silva  of  North  Arm  I  .  S 
Sargent. 


Blue  Ash,  with  Beed  twi 

one  quarter  uf  the  way 
around. 


2^6       FAMILIAR   TREES   AND   THEIR   LEAVES. 

The  bark  of  the  trunk  is  light  gray,  and  it  cracks  in 
thin  scales. 

The  leaves  (eight  to  twelve  inches  long)  are  com- 
posed of  from  five  to  nine  (usually  seven)  yellow- 
green  leaflets,  which  are  slightly  paler  below,  and 
tipped  along  the  rib  with  downy  hairs ;  the  edges 
are  sharply  toothed,  and  the  leaflet  stem  is  barely  an 
eighth  of  an  inch  long.  In  autumn  the  foliage  turns 
a  pale,  dull  yellow.  The  seeds  are  rather  blunt  and 
somewhat  notched  at  the  end  of  the  wing. 

The  blue  ash  is  not  a  very  common  tree,  and  it  is 
found  mostly  in  moist  woods  or  on  rich  limestone 
hills  in  the  West,  from  southern  Michigan  to  central 
Minnesota  ;  southward  it  extends  to  northern  Alabama 
and  northeastern  Arkansas.  The  wood  is  hard  and 
close-grained.  In  color  it  is  brownish  yellow,  and  it 
is  used  extensively  for  the  interior  finish  of  houses. 
A  blue  dye  is  extracted  from  the  inner  bark  by 
steeping  it  in  water,  and  to  this  fact  it  undoubtedly 
owes  its  name. 

Water  Ash.  The  water  ash  is  a  tree  from  25  to 

Fraxinus  piatycarpa.    40   feet    high,   which  inhabits  the 

Fraxi/ius  Caroliniana.       -,  .,  ,  ., 

almost  inaccessible  river  swamps  of 
the  South,  where  it  is  found  in  the  shade  of  the 
bald  cypress.  Its  leaves  (seven  to  twelve  inches 
long)  have  from  five  to  seven  ovate  leaflets,  which  are 
deep  green  above  and  pale  green  below,  with  per- 


THE  ASH-LEAVED   MAPLE   AND   THE   ASIIES.  247 


Fraxinus 

samhucifolia 
Fraxinus  nigra.  tall,      slender 


haps  a  slight  downiness  along  the  ribs.  This  tree 
may  be  easily  distinguished  from  the  other  ashes  by 
its  broad,  roundish,  slightly  toothed  leaflets, 
and  the  elliptical  (not  wedge-shaped)  seeds. 

The  water  ash  extends  from  southern 
Virginia  to  central    Florida ;  westward 
it    reaches    its    limit  in  the  valley  of 
the  Sabine  River,  Tex.,  and  in  south - 

Black  Ash.         eastern  Arkansas. 
The  black  ash  is  a 

tree 
which  grows  from  40  to  70  feet,  and 
occasionally,  in  the  forest,  90  feet 
high ;  it  lias  a  dark-gray  trunk.  Its 
leaves  (twelve  to  sixteen  inches  long)  are 
composed  of  from  seven  to  eleven  leaflets, 
which  are  joined  to  the  main  stem  without 
a  sign  of  a  stemlet ;  they  are  distinctly  wafc*Ask. 
but  irregularly  toothed,  and  the  stem  is  grooved ; 
in  color  they  are  a  deeper  green  than  those  of  the 
white  ash,  and  pale  below,  with  rusty  hairs  scattered 
over  the  whitish  ribs.  In  the  White  Mountain  re- 
gion they  do  not  appear  until  the  latter  part  of  May, 
and  they  turn  brownish  and  drop  after  the  first  heavy 
frost  in  early  October.  In  fact,  I  have  noticed  that 
the  black  ash  sheds  its  leaves  almost  if  not  quite  as 
soon  as  the  butternut      The  winged  seed  is  blunt  at 


218       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


Black  Ash. 


both  ends,  and  the  wing  forms  a  margin  all  around 
the  seed. 

The  black  ash  is  f  onnd  in  swamps  and  moist  wood- 


THE  ASII-LKAVKD   MAPLE   AND   THE   ASHES.  249 

lands,  and  is  distributed  from  Maine  to  northern 
Minnesota;  southward  it  extend.-  to  the  mountains  of 
Virginia,  and  southwestward  to  central  Missouri  and 

northwestern  Arkansas.  The  light,  brownish  wood  is 
soft  and  has  a  handsome  grain.  It  is  used  for  the 
interior  finish  of  houses,  and  for  cabinet-work  and 
barrel  hoops.  The  pliable  and  tough  wood  of  young 
saplings  I  have  found  very  useful  for  ribs  in  the  con- 
struction of  a  river  canoe.  Soaked  in  hot  water,  it  is 
quite  surprising  to  see  how  much  bending  and  twist- 
ing a  strip  of  young  black  ash  will  bear  before  it 
breaks. 

The  European  ash  (Frax'utus  excehior),  which  is 
sometimes  found  in  parks  and  gardens,  has  from 
eleven  to  thirteen  leaflets  (a  lesser  number  in  some 
varieties),  which  are  deep  green,  broad,  lance-shaped, 
and  toothed.  The  seed,  like  that  of  the  black  ash,  is 
also  winged  all  around.  The  weeping  ash  (vdv.ju//- 
dida)  is  one  of  the  most  beautiful  forms  of  this 
species. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

IV.  Compound  Opposite  Leaves. 

2.  With  teeth.  Leaflets  radiating. 

THE  HORSE-CHESTNUTS  OR  BUCKEYES. 

The  beautiful  native  buckeyes  and  the  foreign 
horse-chestnuts,  with  broad,  rounded  figures  and 
haud-shaped,  radiating  leaves,  are  conventional  char- 
acters which  concede  little  in  the  direction  of  the 
picturesque.  Even  the  symmetrical  sugar  maple  is 
not  without  a  certain  freedom  in  detail  as  well  as  out- 
line ;  but  the  horse-chestnuts  are  the  embodiment  of 
rule  and  order,  both  in  figure  and  foliage.  A  full- 
leaved  branch  is  so  conventional  in  its  leaf  arrange- 
ment that  a  careful  drawing  appears  like  a  decorative 
design — I  mean  if  the  branch  is  copied,  looking  at  it 
square  in  the  face.    The  most  beautiful  of  these  radi- 

Horse-Chestnut.      ating-leaved   trees    is    the    common 
yEscnius  horse-chestnut,*  which   comes   from 

Hippocastanum.      -r-i  T,    .  -■•  1  t 

rtr  Europe,    it  is  a  medium-sized,  round- 

*  "  It  was  introduced  into  this  country  about  the  middle  of 

250 


THE  HORSE-CHESTNUTS  OR    BUCKEYES.      251 

figured  tree,  on  the  average  not  more  than  40  ;■ 
high.  The  leaf*  is  composed  of  about  seven  leafli 
(sometimes  there  arc  hut  five),  which  are  abruptly 
pointed,  strongly  veined,  and  toothed  on  a  somewhat 
scalloped  edge.  The  large,  pyramidal  clusters  of 
cream-white  flowers,  spotted  with  dull  yellow  and 
ruddy  purple,  bloom  in  May  or  June,  and  impart  a 
very  ornamental  appearance  to  the  tree.  The  fruit 
has  a  thickish  husk  with  strong  prickles  and  a  large 
chestnut-colored  nut,  of  a  peculiar,  strong,  but  aro- 
matic odor.  It  is  not  edible  ;  some  say  that  it  is 
poisonous. 

The  red  horse-chestnut  {^-Esculus  rubicwnda)  is 
thought  to  be  a  hybrid  between  the  common  horse- 
chestnut  and  JEsculas  pavia,  one  of  the  buckeyes. 
It  is  a  great  favorite,  and  is  frequently  found  in  parks 
and  gardens.  Its  flowers  are  of  a  warm,  pinkish-red 
color,  and  its  leaf  is  composed  of  from  live  to  seven 
rather  rough  leaflets,  sometimes  dotted  here  and  there 
with  red.  The  combined  pink  and  green  .colors  of 
this  tree  when  it  is  in  bloom  are  most  charming  and 
soft.     The  tone  is  pitched  in  a  low  key,  and  merits 

the  last  century;  the  first  tree  is  said  to  be  still  standing  on  the 
estate  of  Mr.  Lemuel  Wells,  of  Yonkers,  N.  V."  Prof.  Sargent, 
in  Silva  of  North  America,  says  it  is  indigenous  in  the  mountains 
of  northern  Greece. 

*  The  leaves  are  rarely  or  never  eaten  by  the  larva'  of  insects. 


252       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 


Horse-Chestnut. 


THE  HORSE-CHESTNl  TS  oK   HITKEYES.      253 


the  attention  of  those  who   delight   in   "aesthetic' 
color. 

Ohio  or  Fetid  The  Ohio  or  fetid  buckeye  i>  a  small 

Buckeye.  tree  from  20  to  35  (rarely  it  is  T<») 

^sculus  glabra.       f  j.    ,  ^  j^.j.    ^  .    R  ^ 

agreeable,  rank  odor.     Its  leaf  is  composed  of  five, 

sometimes  seven,  long,  ovate  leaflets 
►which    are    not    broad    and   abruptly 
pointed  like  those  of  the  horse-chest- 
nut.     Their   edges    are   rather   un- 
equally  fine-toothed.     The  flowers 
are  small,  not  showy,  and  light  yel- 
low green.     The  fruit,  which  is 
about   an  inch  and  a  quarter  or 
two     inches    in    diameter,   has 
prickles  on  the  husk  (which  in- 
closes   two    nuts)    when   it   is 
young ;  otherwise  it  has  a  warty 
appearance.     The  nut  is  smooth, 
and  an  inch  or  more  broad. 

The  Ohio  buckeye  *  grows  on 
river    banks  and  low  ground  from 
western    Pennsylvania    to    southern 
Iowa,  central  Kansas,  and  Indian  Ter-     Ohio  Buckeye; 

.  ..         one  leaflet, 

ntory  ;    southward   it  extends  west  01     flowers  and  nut 

*  The  extensive  growth  of  this  species  in  Ohio,  the  "  Buckeye 

State,"  occasioned  that  name. 


254       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR"  LEAVES. 

the  Alleghany  Mountains  to  northern  Alabama.  The 
wood  is  light  and  tough. 

The    yellow  or   sweet  buckeye  is  a 
Yellow  or  Sweet  J 

Buckeye.  large  tree  from  30  to  90  feet  high 

sEscvius  octandra.    (southwestward  it  is  only  a  shrub  6 

^Eseulus  octandra.  .  . 

ieet  high),  which  grows  m  rich  woods 
from  Allegheny  County,  Pa.,  southward  along  the 
Alleghany  Mountains  to  the  vicinity  of  Augusta, 
Ga.,  and  northern  Alabama 
to  southern  Iowa  and  Texas 
its  name  to  the 
tree  does  not  possess 
disagreeable  odor 
common  to 
other  mem- 
bers of  the 
family. 

The  leaves 
are  composed 

from    five    tO    Seven     Sweet  Buckeye  ;  one  leaflet,  flowers  and  nut. 

elliptical       leaflets 

from  four  to  six  inches  long.  They  are  sharply  and 
rather  evenly  toothed,  and  often  a  trifle  downy  along 
the  ribs  beneath.  They  are  sometimes  shed  quite 
early  in  September.     The  flowers  are  dull  yellow.* 


*  I  have  drawn  the  flower  because  it  is  distinctly  different 
from   that   of  the  Ohio   buckeye  ;   the  calyx  is  elongated  and 


THE  HORSE-CHESTNUTS   OR    BUCKEYE&      %K 


Tlie  fruit,  about  two  inches  or  more  in  diameter,  has 
an  uneven  but  not  a  prickly  surface.  The  nut,  one 
or  two  in  a  husk,  is  about  an  inch  or  more  broad. 
The  wood  is  light  and  strong,  and  is  sometimes  used 
for  making  kitchen  utensils. 

The  purple  sweet  buckeye,  JEscuh/.s  <f<jmdray  \  ar. 
hyhrida  (also  called  JEscuImb  fla/oa^  var.  /pwrjywra%- 
cens)  has  ruddy-colored  or  dull-purplish  flowers,  and 
leaflets  which  are  very  downy  beneath.  Its  bark  is 
lighter  colored. 

The  red  buckeye  (jEscuZus  Paciii)  is  little  more 
than  a  shrub,  but  it  occasionally  grows  to  a  height  of 
25  feet.*  It  has  large  clusters  of  bright-red  floweis 
(which  bloom  in  May),  and  generally  smooth  leav<  s. 
This  tree  grows  wild  in  the  fertile  valleys  of  Virginia 
and  southward.     It  extends  westward  to  Missouri.  + 

the  lateral  petals  are  long,  narrow,  and  roundish  at  the 
ends.     • 

*  The  largest  tree  of  this  species  in  this  country  is  in  the  gar- 
den of  Mr.  Landreth,  of  Philadelphia;  it  is  25  feet  high,  and  has 
a  trunk  circumference  of  three  feet  and  three  quarters. —  Trees 
and  Tree-Plantin<i,  J.  S.  Brisbin. 

f  In  the  Carolinas  its  saponiferous  roots  arc  used  as  a  substi- 
tute for  soap,  and  its  bruised  branches  and  bark  are  used  to 
stupefy  fish  in  small  ponds.—  Trees  and  Tree-Planiiny,  J.  >. 
Brisbin. 


CHAPTER  XXL 

V.  Evergreen  Leaves. 

1.  With  long  needles. 

THE  PINE. 

The  evergreens  are  pre-eminently  trees  of  winter. 
At  no  other  season  of  the  year  is  the  greenness  of 
foliage  quite  so  restful  and  grateful  to  the  eyes.  But 
this  demulcent  effect  on  one's  eyesight,  at  the  time 
of  dazzling  snows,  is  nothing  in  comparison  with  the 
marvelous  ameliorating  influence  which  these  winter 
trees  exert  on  our  rigorous  Northern  cold.  They  rob 
the  winter  winds  of  their  severity,  and  produce  for 
the  invalid  an  equable  and  temperate  climate  possess- 
ing remarkable  health-giving  qualities.  There  is  no 
exaggeration  of  truth  in  saying  that  the  temperature 
in  a  pine  belt  differs  radically  from  that  in  the  open 
country  fifteen  miles  away,  although  it  would  be  dif- 
ficult to  demonstrate  the  fact  by  means  of  the  ther- 
mometer.    The  mercury  might  record  but  a  slight 

variation  in  the  temperature  of  the  two  places,  but 

256 


TIIK   PINE. 

one's  feelings  would  be  sure  to  Indicate  an  immeasur 

able  change. 

The  fact  remains,  however,  that  the  winter  climate 
of  the  "pines"  in  New  Jersey  is  very  similar  to  that 
of  Florida.  One  is  not  so  much  surprised  at  this 
after  a  walk  through  the  pine  forest,  for  all  below  is 
mild  and  quiet,  while  above,  the  sighing.  Bulging 
winds  relentlessly  toss  the  rugged  branches  to  and 
fro.  In  the  White  Mountains  I  have  also  noticed 
that,  however  bitterly  cold  it  was  on  the  open  road, 
the  sheltered  depths  of  the  forest  permitted  me  to 
use  my  pencil  with  unprotected  lingers  for  quite  a 
length  of  time.  One  must  experience  the  tonic  of 
the  winter  air  laden  with  balsamic  odors  in  order  t<> 
properly  appreciate  it.  There  is  as  much  scientific 
truth  as  there  is  poetry  in  what  Whittier  had  writ- 
ten long  before  the  Northern  winter  sanitarium 
became  popular : 

There's  iron  in  our  Northern  winds  ; 
Our  pines  are  trees  of  healing'. 

But  there  are  few  of  us  who   see  much   of  the 

pines   in   winter,    and    in    summer    their   beauty    is 

eclipsed  by  the  prodigal  luxuriance  of  the  deciduous 

trees.     However,  the  pine  grove  is  not  unappreciated 

even  in  August,  and  if  we  will  bend  our  step-  thither 

We  will  enter  a  region  far  more  accessible  and  intcr- 
18 


25 S       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR   LEAVES. 

esting  than  the  overcrowded  one  where  grow  the  oak 

and  maple. 

White  Pine.        The  fine-needled  white  pine   is  the 
Pinus  strobus.      m0st   valuable    timber   tree    of    our 

country.      It    grows   with    a    straight    trunk   from 


White  Pine,  leaf  at  A. 


70  to  180  feet  high,  and  has  yellowish -white,  soft 
wood  with  a  straight  grain  nearly  free  from  resin. 


--I* 


'ine 


THE  PINE.  259 

But,  alas  for  the  white  pine!  it  has  heen  .-••  »  xtensive- 
ly  used  for  building  purposes,  and  many  regions  that 
were  supposed  to  contain  inex- 
haustible supplies  have  been  so      -jMfc 
completely  stripped  of  all  vain-       «d 
able  timber,  that  the  day  is  ap-         •■^/.'/V 
proaching   when    the    pine    forest  -^nr^ 

will   be   no   more.      The   beautiful 
grove     known     as     the     Cathedral 
Woods,  in  North  Conway,  N.  II.,  is  rap- 
idly falling  a  victim  to  the  axe.     The  life     Whit(J  Pi 
of  a  tree  is  considered  of  less  value  than 
its  timber;  and  our  State  Legislatures  seem  unable 
to  exert  their  power  of  eminent  domain  in  behalf  of 
the  tree,  although  no  end  of  it  has  been  expended  in 
obtaining  highways  for  the  locomotive. 

The  white  pine  has  the  softest  and  most  delicate 
needle  of  all  the  species.  It  grows  in  a  little  bunch 
of  five,  and  varies  in  length  from  three  to  four 
inches.  Its  color  is  a  clear,  lightish  green,  with 
a  trifle  of  whitish  bloom.  The  cone,  from  four  to 
six  inches  long,  is  narrow  and  slightly  curved  ;  it 
has  no  prickle  at  the  tip  of  the  rather  thin 
scales. 

This  pine  is  common  from  Maine  westward  to 
Minnesota  and  eastern  Iowa;  southward  it  extends 
along   the   Alleghany   Mountains    to    Georgia.     On 


200       FAMILIAR  TREES   AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


older  specimens  the  gray-brown  trunk  is  rough,  but 
on  the  younger  ones  it  is  quite  smooth. 
Southern  Yellow     The  Southern  yellow  pine  has  very 
Pine.  resinous  yellow  wood,  and  extreme- 

Plnnspalustrls.        Jy    ^.^    ^^     ^^    ^    ^    fif_ 

teen  inches  in  length, 
bright  olive-green, 
and     grouped     in 
bunches  of  three; 
they  grow  in  thick 
clusters      at      the 
ends  of  the  branch- 
es.      The    beautiful 
cylindrical     cones    are 
*om  six    to   ten   inches 
light  brown,  and  have 
thick  scales  with  tiny 
at    the    tips.      The 
needles   and   cones   are   very 
ornamental,  and   they  can  be 
used  most  effectively  in  deco- 
ration.    Indeed,  for  this  pur- 
pose I  like   the   branches  of 
a  Southern  yellow  pine  better 
than  I  do  palm  leaves. 

This     pine     furnishes     the 
most  valuable  and  ornamental  wood  of  all  the  ever- 


Southei  11  Yellow  Pine 

(Georgia  Pine). 
One  scale  of  cone  at  A. 


THE    PINE. 


-;; 


green  trees;  it  is  generally  called  Georgia  pine,  and 
its  color  is  a  rich,  transparent  ruddy,  gold-ocher;  it 
is  also  extremely  hard  and  durable,  and  i>  largely 
used  for  the  decks  of  ships.  The  tree  grows  about 
70  or  80  feet  high,  lias  rather  thin-scaled  bark,  and 
is  found  in  sandy  soil  from  southern  Virginia  to 
Florida  and  Texas. 

Loblolly  or  The  loblolly  or  old -field  pine 

Old-field  Pine.     is  a  large-sized 

Pin  us  Ttcda. 

tree,    growing 
from  50  to  150  feet  high  (only 
in   the   forests  does   it   attain 
the  greater  height),  which  also 
has  long  needles,  measuring  at 
most  perhaps   ten   inches ;   they 
are  rather  rigid  in  character,  deep 
olive-green,    slender,  and   grow 
three  (rarely  two)  in  a  bunch. 
The  cones  are   not   pendant, 
but  are  placed  laterally   on 
the   branchlets.      They  are 
three  or  four  inches  long, 
conical,  and  the  scales  have 
short,    straight,    or    some- 
times slightly  incurved    prickles. 

The   loblolly   pine  is   found    from    Delaware   to 
Florida,  near   the   coast,   and    thence    it    extends    to 


Loblolly  Tine. 


262      FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 

Texas    and    Arkansas.      Its   wood    has   no   especial 

value. 

The  Northern  pitch  pine  is  a  medi- 
um-sized, rugged-looking  tree  which 
grows  from  30  to  80  feet  high,  with 

curved  needles  about  three  or  four  inches  long,  grow- 


Northern  Pitch 
Pine. 

Pinus  rigida. 


Northern  Pitch  Pine. 


ing  in  bunches  of  three ;  they  are  coarse,  rigid,  and 
somewhat  flattened.  The  cones  are  from  one  and  a 
half  to  three  and  a  half  inches  long,  ovate,  and  the 
scales  are  furnished  with  a  short  recurved  prickle. 
Sometimes  the  cones  grow  in  clusters. 

The    tree    has    a   very   rough    appearance,  with 


THE  PINE. 


263 


B 

Northern  Pitch  Pine.  Needles  at  A, 
cone  and  prickled  scale  at  B,  mag- 
nified needle  at  C. 


scragged  branches  and  coarse-scaled,  dark,  brown- 
gray  bark.  Its  wood  is  hard,  pitchy,  and  of  no  value 
except  for  fuel.  My 
drawing  of  the  magnified 
needle  will  show  some- 
thing of  the  rough  char- 
acter which  marks  every 
detail  of  the  tree.  The 
edge  of  the  needle  is 
toothed  like  a  saw,  but 
the  surface  is  daintily 
marked  by  rows  of  fine 
white  dots.  Sometimes  Nature's  roughness  under 
the  microscope  resolves  itself  into  extreme  delicacy. 

The  Northern  pitch  pine  grows  from  Maine  to 
northern  Georgia,  western  New  York,  and  eastern 
Kentucky.  It  is  common  in  sandy  barrens,  and  is 
sometimes  found  in  swamps. 

Scotch  Pine.        The    Scotch   pine,    also    called   (but 
Finns  sylvestri*.      wrongly)  Scotch  fir,  is  the  common 

pine  of  northern  Europe.  It  has  been  introduced 
into  this  country  so  extensively  that  few  parks  or 
private  grounds  are  without  at  least  one  specimen. 
The  color  of  this  pine  is  a  study  for  an  artist.  In 
many  specimens  it  is  a  most  beautiful  light  sage- 
green,  and  in  others  it  is  bluish  sage-green.  Consid- 
ering the  interest  attached  to  tree  colors,  and  the  con- 


2CA       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 


elusions  I  have  arrived  at  regarding  them,  it  is  some- 
what disturbing  to  find,  in  the  half  dozen  botanical 
books  before  me,  the  leaf   color   given, 
but  no  further  hint  of  the  general 
color  effect   of   the   trees.*      So, 
when  I  say  that  the  foliage  of 
the     Scotch    pine    is    "  sage- 
green,"  I  find  myself  with- 
out  support  from   the  bot- 
anists.     However,  botan- 
ical writers  rarely   assist 
us  in  the  recognition  of 
those    broad    effects     of 
color  and  form  in  Nature 
which    are    sometimes    pro- 
foundly    impressive,  f     and 
their   indifference    to  truths, 
which  are  not  categorically  bo- 
tanical   is    therefore   excusable ; 
but  for  me  it  would  be  inexcusa- 
bly negligent  not  to  say  that  the 
Scotch  fir  possesses  a  most  pe- 


Scotch  Pine. 


*  The  color  of  the  leaf  by  no  means  decides  the  color  of  the 
tree.  The  latter  is  generally  complex,  through  a  variety  of  causes 
chief  among  which  is  atmospheric  influence. 

f  I  must  not  omit  to  say,  however,  that  Prof.  Sargent,  in  his 
Silva  of  North  America,  has  given  most  graphic  and  truthful 


THE    PINK. 


265 


euliarly  aesthetic  light  green  entirely  unlike  the  color 
of  any  other  pine  tree. 

The  grayish,  blue-green  needle  is  from  two  to  two 
and  a  half  inches  long,  curved,  twisted,  and  grows  in 
pairs.  The  very  odd-looking  cones  are  from  two  t<> 
three  inches  long,  tapering,  angular-scaled,  and  they 
require  two  years  in  which  to  ripen;  the  scale-  are 
tipped  with  a  recurved  prickle.  The  trunk  of  the 
Scotch  pine  is  a  warm,  ruddy  buff  color.  The  little 
twigs  are  yellowish,  and  the  needles  grow  thickly  at 
the  ends  of  the  branchlets.  This 
tree  furnishes  the  wood  called  deal, 
so  commonly  used  in  Europe. 

Table  Mountain       The       Table 
Pine.  Mountain  or 

Pinus  punqens.  •   i  1 

1     *  prickly  pme 

is  an  inhabitant  of  the 


Alleghany  Mountains, 

and     is    found    from 

Pennsylvania  to  South 

Carolina.      Its     stout 

needles  are  about  two 

inches  long,  flat,  and 

dark,  bluish  green;  they  grow  in  bunches  of  two  and 

sometimes  three.     The  cone  is  about  three  inches  or 


Table  Mountain  Pine. 


descriptions  of  the  autumnal  coloring  of  many  trees  ami  their 
leaves. 


266       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

more  long,  ovate,  and  its  scales  are  armed  with  a 
strong,  hooked  prickle  about  a  quarter  of  an  inch 
long.  The  general  appearance  of  the  Table  Moun- 
tain pine  is  similar,  excepting  its  color,  to  that  of  the 
Scotch  pine ;  but  its  height  is  only  from  20  to  60 
feet.  The  wood  is  not  useful  for  timber. 
Jersey  Scrub  Pine.  0ne  might  think,  from  its  low,  strag- 
Pinus  inojps.  gnng  character,  that  the  Jersey  scrub 

Funis  Virqiiiiana.  •  -,t  i  •    i 

v  pine  was  without  beauty  or  interest. 

I  am  not  of  that  opinion,  however,  for  the  bold  foli- 
age and  long  branches  are  uncommonly  picturesque 
when  seen  in  relief  against  the  sky,  and  certainly  no 
artist  could  wish  for  a  wilderness  more  beautiful  than 
that  called  the  "  Pines "  in  New  Jersey,  where  the 
tree  may  be  seen  in  its  prime,  clothed  in  a  soft,  warm 
green  in  striking  relief  with  the  marvelously  white, 
sandy  floor  beneath.  There  is  a  certain  rugged  beauty 
to  the  tree,  notwithstanding  an  unconventional  ap- 
pearance. Its  long,  outstretched  limbs  with  irregular 
dotted  outlines,  its  bristling  warm  green  needles,  and 
its  strongly  accented,  blackish  trunk — these  are  at- 
tractive qualities  which  not  all  the  other  pines  possess 
even  in  part. 

The  needles,  one  and  a  half  to  barely  three  inches 
long,  grow  two  in  a  bunch ;  they  are  flat,  a  trifle 
twisted  and  curved,  one  sixteenth  of  an  inch  wide, 
and  of  a  lively,  deep  yellow  green.     The  outer  surfaces 


THE    PINK. 


26' 


are  a  little  deeper  in  color.     The  bark  of  the  trunk  La 
grayish  brown,  and  the  thin  seal*-,   perpendicularly 
arranged,  are  often  sharply  and  hori- 
zontally cracked  across.     The 


Jersey  Scrub  Tine. 


young  twigs  have  a  purplish-brown  hue,  with  a  plum- 
like bloom. 

The  Jersey  scrub  pine  grows  from  15  to  40  feet 
high,  and  is  found  on  barren  and  sandy  ground,  from 
Long  Island,  N.  Y.,  to  South  Carolina  near  the  coast, 
and  westward  through  Kentucky  to  southern  Indiana. 
The  cone  is  about  two  inches  long,  and  is  furnished 
with  thornlike  prickles  on  the  tips  of  the  scales. 
Yellow  Pine.  Tlie  yellow  pine  is  a  Btraight,  sym 
Pinusmitix.  metrical,  often  cone-shaped   tree,  50 

Pinus  echinata.  ■* /\r\    _e  1  •    1  i  •    1  i       1  1 

to  100  teet  nigh,  which  i-  valuable 
for  its  lumber.  Indeed,  yellow  pine  is  next  in  value 
to  Georgia  pine,  and  is  largely  used  as  an  ornamental 
wood  for  interior  trimmings,  flooring,  ceiling,  .-hip- 


268       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

building,  etc.     The  grain  of  the  wood  is  very  beauti- 
ful, and  shows  long  streaks  of  deep,  gold-ocher  color, 


Yellow  Pine. 


rather  more  delicate  and  less  ruddy  than  that  of 
Georgia  pine.  The  tree  has  a  handsome  figure,  with 
regular  branches,  and  soft,  slender  needles  which 
grow  thickly  at  the  ends  of  the  branchlets.  It  is 
one  of  the  most  ornamental  members  of  the  pine 
family. 

The  needles,  two  and  a  half  to  five  inches  long, 
grow  two  and  occasionally  three  in  a  bunch;  they 
are  roundish,  slender,  and  dark  green.  The  trunk 
bark  is  gray  brown,  and  the  cones  (the  smallest  ones 
of  the  American  pines),  barely  two  inches  long,  have 
rather  small,  weak  prickles  at  the  tips  of  the  scales. 

The  yellow  pine  is  common  in  dry  or  sandy  soil 
from  Staten  Island,  N.  Y.,  southward  to  Florida,  and 
southwestward  from  southern  Indiana  to  southeastern 
Kansas  and  Texas. 


TIIK    PINE. 


269 


Gray  or  Northern    The    gray    pine,    sometimes    called 
scrub  Pine.        Northern   scrub   pine,    is    the    Least 

Pinus  I  la  nks!  ana.      •  ,.  ,.  . , 

interesting  01  the  species.  Its  needle 
is  so  short  that  in  general  effect  the  tree  reminds  one 
of  some  scraggy  coarse  spruce.  It  is  often  a  mere 
shrub,  and  very  rarely  attains  a  height  of  30  feet. 


Gray  or  Northern  Scrub  Pine. 

The  needles  are  the  shortest  in  the  pine  family ; 
they  are  scarcely  over  an  inch  long,  flat,  and  about  a 
sixteenth  of  an  inch  wide.  They  usually  grow  in 
pairs,  and  have  an  even  bright  yellow-green  color, 
which  varies  but  a  trifle  in  different  specimens. 
JSTotice  also  that  the  two  needles  do  not  hold  closely 
together,  as  in  the  case  of  the  white  pine,  but  diverge 
at  a  wide  angle.  The  newer  whitish  buff  cones,  about 
two  inches  long  (sometimes  less),  are  often  curved  at 
the  end,  and  point  in  the  same  direction  as  the  branch. 
The  old,  dark-brown  cones  have  reflex  scales  with  no 
prickles.     The  young  twigs  are  reddish.     This  pine  is 


270       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


found  in  the  barren  or  sandy  soils  of  southern  Maine, 

northern  Vermont,  and  westward  to  Minnesota.     I 

have  never  found  it  in  the  sandy  valleys  of  the  White 

Mountain  district. 
Bed  or  Norway     The  red  pine,  which  is  usually  called 

Norway  pine  in  New  Hampshire,  is 
one  of  the  handsomest  members  of  its 

family,  especially  when  young.     My 

drawings  of  the  branches,  taken 

from  a  young  and  an 

old 

g 


Pine. 

Plnus  resinosa. 


Young  Red  or  Norway  Pine. 


differ.  The  needles  of  a  young  specimen  are  thick- 
ly clustered  along  the  stout  and  extremely  ornamen- 
tal branch  which  is  terminated  by  a  still  thicker 
cluster  of  long,  dark-green  needles.     These  branches 


THE   IMNTE. 


271 


I  have   found  very  useful   for  decorative    purpoft 
Their  bold,  vigorous  outlines  can  scarcely  be  excelled 
by  the  palm  leaf. 

The  needles,  five  to  seven  inches  long,  grow  in 
pairs.  They  are  roundish,  straight,  and  dark  green. 
The  cones  are  two  or  two  and  a  half  inches 
lornr,  and  their  scales  are  not  furnished  with 
prickles.  They  usually  grow  in  clusters. 
The  bark  of  the  trunk  is  very  ruddy,  and 
even  the  branchlets  are  smooth  and  red.  So 
the  tree  may  easily  be  identified  without 
the  aid  of  the  needles. 

The  Norway  pine  grows  to 
a  height  of  from  50  to  90  feet ; 
it  is  very  common,  particular- 
ly on  the  worn-out  pasture 
lands,  in  the  southern  districts 
of  the  White  Mountains,  and 
it  is  found  from  Massachu- 
setts westward  to  Minnesota, 
durable,  not  very  resinous,  and  is  well  adapted  to 
construction  requiring  unusual  strength.  It  makes  B 
tine  flooring,  although  it  has  not  the  beautiful  grain 
of  the  yellow  pine.  As  an  ornamental  tree  the  young 
red  pine  has  few  equals  ;  but  I  must  Dot  say  too  much 
about  this,  lest,  by  provoking  comparisons,  some  in- 
justice will  be  done  another  equally  beautifu1  pine. 


Norway  Pine  cone  and  needle. 

The  wood   is   hard, 


272       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

We  must  not  forget  that  the  beauty  of  Nature 
confines  itself  to  no  rule  of  limitation  :  even  as  "  one 
star  differeth  from  another  star  in  glory,"  so  beauty  is 
made  perfect  by  differences  in  type — and  in  Nature 


Old  Norway  Pine. 


these  are  manifold.  The  pity  of  it  is  that  so  few  of 
us  are  willing  to  believe  in  more  than  one  or  two 
types.  I  will  not  say,  then,  that  Pinus  resinosa  is 
more  ornamental  than  Pinus  /Strohus,  but  that  the 
beauty  of  the  former  can  never  be  appreciated  until 
the  beauty  of  the  latter  emphasizes  it  by  contrast. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 


V.  Evergreen  Leaves. 

2.  With  short,  flat,  blunt  needles,  or  with  sofl  need! 
THE  HEMLOCK,  FIR,  AXD   LARCH. 

Hemlock.  There  is  no  more  graceful  and  orna- 

Tsuga  Canadensis.    mental  evergreen  tree  than  the  hem- 
lock when  it  grows  in  the 
open,  where  it  receives 
the  full  benefit  of  unob- 
structed sunlight.     The 
boughs  of  this  tree  are 
plumelike,  drooping,  and 
spread  out  laterally  with 
an  appearance  of   feathery 
lightness.      Its    blunt,    flat 
needles,     about 
half    an    inch 
long,    are    the 
most    lustrous         "    Al 
dark  green  imag- 
inable, with  a  delicate  whitish  tint  beneath  ;  iu  late 

in  OTQ 


Hemlock. 


274       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


Hemlock  Cones. 


spring  the  newer  ones  are  light  yellow  green.  There 
is  no  phase  of  tree  life  more  beautiful  than  that  pre- 
sented by  the  hem- 
lock clothed  in  its 
springtime  garb  ; 
the  tips  of  the 
dark  -  green  sprays 
are  painted  in  yel- 
low -  green,  with  a 
fairylike  daintiness,  the  effect  of  which  could  only 
be  conveyed  to  the  mind  by  a  careful  study  in  color. 

But  a  young,  full-foliaged  hemlock  on  the  edge 
of  the  pasture  is  a  very  different  character  from  the 
dark  and  gloomy  tree  in  the  forest  shades ;  here,  its 
straight  stem,  with  few  or  no  lower  branches,  rises  to 
a  height  of  from  50  to  80  feet. 

The  tiny  cones  are  oval,  thin-scaled,  and,  when 
young,  tan-color.  They  are  scarcely  over  half  an 
inch  long,  and  depend  from  the  lower  side  of  the 
branchlet ;  the  tiny  winged  seed  will  be  seen  en- 
larged in  my  drawing  at  A.  This  tree  abounds  in 
the  rocky  woods  of  the  North  ;  it  extends  from 
Maine  to  Delaware,  and  follows  the  Alleghany 
Mountains  southward  to  Alabama ;  westward  it  finds 
its  limit  in  Minnesota. 

The  bark  of  the  hemlock  is  largely  used  for  tan- 
ning leather,  and  I  am  sorry  to  say  that  in  the  White 


THE  HEMLOCK,   FIR,    AND    LARCH.  275 

Mountains  many  of  the  trees  are  destroyed  solely  for 
their  bark,  although  the  timber  is  very  valuable  for 
house-framing  and  for  rough  hoarding;  much  of  it, 
though,  is  subject  to  a  Haw  called  "wind  shake,"  a 
perpendicular  splitting  of  the  wood  caused  by  winter 
storms  which  bend  and  "shake'  the  stems.  The 
wood  is  rather  white,  and  faintly  tinged  with  buff 
or  pink;  its  grain  is  coarse,  twisted,  and  unfit  for 
interior  finish. 

The  mountain  hemlock  (Txuga  Ca/rolvrda/ruC\  is 
a  species  so  similar  to  the  foregoing  that  it  is  not 
an  easy  matter  to  discriminate  between  them,  h 
is  rather  rare,  anyway,  growing  wild  only  in  the 
higher  Alleghany  Mountains.  A  small  specimen  in 
the  Arnold  Arboretum,  the  only  one  I  have  seen, 
differs  from  the  common  hemlock  in  its  larger  needle 
more  thickly  distributed  over  the  branchlet,  and  its 
larger  cone  with  more  spreading  scale-.  This  tree 
rarely  grows  over  30  feet  high. 

Balsam  Fir.        The  balsam  fir  is  the  much-esteemed 

Abies  balsamea.        "  Christmas     tree,"      whose     anmiatie 

perfume  is  a  sufficient  means  for  its  identification. 
This  is  the  tree,  in  fact,  which  furnishes  the  needles 
for  "pine  pillows."  It  can  not  he  reasonably  con- 
fused with  the  spruce  for  several  reasons.  It-  needle 
is  about  three  quarters  of  an  inch  long  (rarely  it 
measures  a  full  inch),  dark   blue-green  above  and 


276       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

silvery  blue-white   below ;   it   is   very  flat,  straight, 
not  curved,  and  has  a  very  Hunt  end.     There  is  a 


Balsam  Fir. 


groove  in  the  center  of  the  needle  above,  and  a  cor- 
responding raised  rib  below.  The  branchlets  are 
flat,  and  the  needles  do  not  project  from  them  in  all 
directions  as  they  do  on  the  sj^ruce ;  the  little  branch- 
lets  are  also  conventionally  arranged  at  an  angle  of 
45°  with  the  larger  ones. 


!H  * 


THE  HEMLOCK,   FIR,   AND    LARCH,  277 

The  bark  of  the  fir  is  gray,  and  what  Little  mark- 
ing there  is  on  the  trunk  is  horizontal  or  haa  a  blifiter- 
like  appearance;  it  is  from  the^e  tiny  exc  LCOfl 

that  the  well-known  Canada  balsam  is  obtained,  which 
is  remarkable  for  its  healing  properties 

The  cone  of  the  fir  is  from  two 
to  four  inches  long,  one  inch  broad, 
and  has  a  peculiar  purplish  color  when 
young  ;    it   holds    a    somewhat    erect 
position  on  the  edge  of  the  branchlet, 
and    the    scales   are   deciduous,   flat, 
rounded,  thin,  and  accompanied  by  a 
leaflet  (bract)  Avhich  is  tipped  by  an 
abrupt  slender  point.  Balsam  Fir  r,,ne- 

The  balsam  fir  is  found  in  damp  woods  and 
mountain   swamps   from  Maine   to    Minnesota,   and 

*  The  atmosphere  which  is  laden  with  the  odors  of  the  balsam 
fir  is  also  remarkable  for  certain  qualities  which  are  beneficial  to 
invalids.  Asheville,  N.  C,  is  situated  on  a  high  plateau  sur- 
rounded by  the  Balsam  Range  of  the  Alleghany  Mountains.  In 
this  town  the  pure,  dry  air  sifted  through  the  balsam  firs  has  a 
wonderful  power  of  healing  for  many  lung  diseases.  There  is  a 
sanitarium  there  which  is  a  popular  and  famous  resort  for  con- 
sumptives. 

The  late  Dr.  A.  L.  Loomis.  of  New  York,  in  a  paper  read  some 
years  ago  before  the  State  Medical  Society,  testified  to  the  fact  that 
the  pines  and  firs  which  abounded  in  the  Adirondack  region  ladened 
the  atmosphere  heavily  with  ozone,  and  that  the  resinou 
of  the  evergreens  were  the  most  beneficial  of  all  tonics  for  the 
patient  suffering  with  pulmonary  phthisis. 


278       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


southward  from  Pennsylvania  along  the  Alleghany 
Mountains  to  North  Carolina.  I  call  to  mind  a 
most  beautiful  group  of  these  spirelike  trees  which 
flanks  what  is  known  as  the  "  Bog  Road ':  in  Camp- 
ton,  N.  EL  I  can  conceive  of  nothing  more  solemn 
and  impressive  than  the  fir  tree  in  moonlight ;  al- 
though it  never  attains  an  altitude  of  more  than  45 
feet  (so  far  as  my  knowledge  extends),  it  certainly 
reveals,  in  the  light  of  the  moon,  a  figure  of  vague 

and  stately  proportions.     My  sketch 
was    taken    from   a   specimen    42 
feet   high,  which   grows  in  a 
maple  orchard  at  Blair,  N.  H. 

Fraser's  Balsam  Fir.    Fraser's  bal- 
AbusFraseri.  gam    fir    ig    ft 


rare,    small   tree    which   does 


not  exceed  40  feet  in  height,  and 
which  grows  in  the  higher  Alle- 
ghany Mountains  from  North  Caro- 
lina southward.     The  very  blunt  nee- 
dle is  from  one  half  to  three  quar- 
ters of  an  inch  long,  and  bluish  white 
on  the  back,  with  a  distinct  line  of 
green   down  the   middle ;   the    little 
branchlets    are    thickly    beset     with 
needles  on  the  upper  side,  and  on  the 
lower  side  the  color  is  extremely  whitish.     While  the 


Fraser's  Fir. 


BALSAM  FIR. 

Bog  Road,  Campton,   Grafton  Co.,  N.  H. 


A  B 

A,  Spruce;  B,  Fraser's  Balsam  Fir  ;  C,  Balsam  Fir. 


THE    HEMLOCK,    FIR,    AND    LARCH.  279 

foreshortened  branchlets  of  the  common  fir  generally 
appear  flattened,  Fraser's    fir  shows   a    considerable 

thickness    of 

needles       on 

the        upper 

side ;  and,  on 

the  contrary, 

the  spruces  show  the  greater  thickness  on  the  under 

side.     My  little   diagrams  will   make   niv    meaning 

plain. 

The  cone  is  oblong,  and  from  one  to  two  inches 
long,  the  leaflets  (bracts)  having  a  short-pointed 
upper  termination  conspicuously  projecting  and  re- 
flexed.  The  general  color  of  a  young  Eraser's  fir 
is  deep  olive-green  with  dashes  of  bluish  sage-white. 

Larch  or  The  larch,  sometimes  called  hackma- 

Hackmatack.  tack  Qr  temarackj  is   a  teU   tree    50  to 

Lnrix  Americana. 

Larix  laricina.  100  feet  high,  with  extremely  thin, 
delicate  pale-green  foliage.  The  leaves  arc  decidu- 
ous, soft,  and  they  grow  in  bunches  along  the  1  (ranch- 
lets  like  thick  threads  about  an  inch  or  less  long. 
The  cone  is  from  one  half  to  three  quarters  of  an 
inch  long,  reddish  brown,  and  has  very  few  scales. 

The  dainty,  cool  green  coloring  of  the  larch  in 
spring,  and  its  extraordinary  thin,  tall  figure,  which  is 
delicately  penciled  against  the  blue  sky  on  a  clear  day, 
make  it  an  exceedingly  ornamental   tree.     The  larch 


280       FAMILIAR  TREES   AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

inhabits  cold  swamps  and  shady  hillsides  throughout 
the  North ;  its  southern  limits  are  Pennsylvania, 
northern  Indiana  and  Illinois,  and  central  Minnesota. 
The  European  larch  (Larix  Ev/ropc&a)  is  a  fast- 
growing  tree  considered  even  more  ornamental  than 
its  American  relative,  with  leaves  about  an  inch  long 
(a  trifle  longer  on  the  average  than  those  of  the  other 
species),  and  of  a  deeper  light  green.  The  branch- 
lets  of  this  tree  are  somewhat  pendulous.  The  cones 
are  sometimes  more  than  an  inch  long,  and  they  have 
numerous  scales.  There  is  also  a  weeping  form  of 
the  European  larch. 


CHAPTER  XXI1L 

V.  Evergreen  Leaves. 

3.  With  short,  sharp  needles,  or  with  scales. 
THE  SPRUCE,  ETC. 

The  distinguishing  difference  between  the  fir  and 
the  spruce  needle  is  the  sharp  tip  of  the  latter,  and 
the  blunt,  almost  squarish  tip  of  the  former.  A 
comparison  of  my  drawings  of  branchlete  taken 
from  these  two  trees  will  also  show  a  great  differ- 
ence in  details  which  I  need  not  mention  here. 
The  little  twigs  of  the  spruce  are  always  sur- 
rounded by  a  body  guard  of  needles;  the  fir  tree 
is  content  to  guard  the  upper  side  of  the  stem,  and 
allow  the  under  side  to  meet  the  winter  winds  un- 
protected; hence  both  stem  and  back  of  leaf  con- 
tribute a  pleasing  variety  of  color  to  the  tree. 

But  the  spruce  (at  least  the  Eastern  spruce)  ha 
uniform  dark,  somber  green,*  which  only  varies  with 


*  The  slight  bloom  which  is  occasionally  present  on  iIh*  under 
side  of  the  needle  does  not  seem  to  affect  th«'  general  green  of  the 
tree. 

281 


282       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


the  species.  There  are  three  species  common  in  the 
northeastern  section  of  the  country — the  red,  black, 
and  white.     The  most  interesting  one  of  these  is  the 

red  spruce.*  This  tree  is  familiar 
to  those  who  may  have  climbed  the 
granite  hills  of  Xew  Hampshire ;  nowhere  else  has 
the  spruce  seemed  to  me  quite  so  impressive,  for  in 


Red  Sprues. 

Plcea  rubra. 
Picea  rubens. 


Red  Spruce. 


*  Botanists  differ  in  opinion  about  the  red  spruce;  some  con- 
sider it  a  variety  of  the  black  spruce.  In  the  Manual,  Gray  fol- 
lows Englemann's  name,  Picea  nigra,  var.  rubra. 


RED  SPRUCE. 

Slope  of  Mi.  Washington,  Coos  Co..  N.  H. 


THE  SPRUCE,   ETC.  2~ 

this  section  of  the  country  it  holds  almost  exclusive 
possession  of  the  wildernesses  and  the  great  summits 
which  rise  from  4,000  to  4,500  feel  above  sea  Level. 
In  traveling  through  the  valleys  of  the  Gale,  Am- 
monoosuc,  Pemigewasset,  Ellis,  and  Saco  Rivers,  one 
may  trace  on  the  mountain  walls  the  line  where  the 
maples  and  birches  stop  and  the  dark  spruces  be- 
gin; their  somber  black-green  color  clothes  the 
greater  hills  with  something  like  majestic  solemnity 
— an  aspect  which  the  poet  Whittier  must  have  had 
in  mind,  (although  he  does  not  allude  to  the  spruce 
tree)  when  he  wrote  this  : 

By  maple  orchards,  belts  of  pine, 

And  larches  climbing  darkly 
The  mountain  slopes,  and,  over  all, 

The  great  peaks  rising-  starkly. 

These  lines,  however,  perfectly  express  the  impres- 
sion which  the  spruce-clad  mountain   wall   produ 
on  the  mind  of  one  who  passes  through  the  valleys 
of  the  White  Mountains. 

In  the  Sandwich  country,  the  scene  of  WliittirrV 
Among  the  Hills,  the  somber  coloring  covers  the 
northern  hills  from  Sandwich  Dome  to  Mount  Cho- 
corua,  a  distance  of  fifteen  miles. 

The  red  spruce  in  mountain  fastnesses  is  the  n. 
picturesque  tree  imaginable;  it  rivals  the  cypr 
the  Southern  swamps.     In  the  dense   forests  which 


284       FAMILIAR   TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

flank  the  Presidential  Range  it  rises  far  above  its 
neighbors  from  a  bed  of  damp  moss  and  pale-tinted 
ferns,  with  tall,  sheer  trunk,  and  scragged  limbs 
draped  with  hoary  moss,  the  acknowledged  king  of 
the  wilderness.  It  bears  all  the  marks  of  a  hard 
fight  for  life  amid  opposing  elements,  but  winter's 
storms  and  biting  arctic  winds  avail  nothing,  for, 
in  spite  of  them,  the  tree  climbs  to  the  very  borders 
of  the  Alpine  region. 

As  Gray  hardly  does  more  than  mention  the  red 
spruce  in  the  Manual,  and  in  the  Field,  Forest,  and 
Garden  Botany  he  does  not  allude  to  it  at  all,  it  will 
be  best  for  me  to  point  out  those  differences  which 
have  been  explained  to  me  by  several  botanists,  and 
add  the  results  of  my  own  observations. 

The  general  appearance  of  the  red  species  in 
the  White  Mountains,  and  the  black  species  in  the 
Arnold  Arboretum,  do  not  correspond  at  all ;  the 
trees  are  entirely  different  in  color.  The  red  spruce 
is  a  dark,  yellow-olive  green ;  the  black  spruce  is  in- 
clined to  a  purplish  black  olive  or  an  intense  olive- 
green.  Of  course,  the  color  of  the  red  species  re- 
solves itself  to  an  intensely  dark,  black  green,  as  it  is 
seen  amonj*  the  deciduous  trees  in  summertime  on 
the  flanks  of  the  great  mountains ;  it  is  not  possible, 
therefore,  to  judge  of  a  tree  color  when  it  is  a  mile 
or  so  away ;  but  as  seen  together,  the  two  species  a 


THE  SPRUCE,  ETC.  285 

hundred  feet  from  the  observer  have  no  resem- 
blance to  each  other  in  point  of  color.  I  might  de- 
scribe the  black  spruce  as  having  a  blacker  tone  with 
a  misty  effect. 

The  cone  of  the  red  spruce  is  comparatively  red- 
der than  that  of  the  black  spruce,  and  it  is  usually  a 
trifle  larger ;  as  a  rule,  the  edges  of  the  scales  are  not 
so  jagged  as  those  of  the  black  spruce  cone,  and  if 
my  drawings  are  compared  it  will  be  seen  that  the 
last-mentioned  cone  has  a  decidedly  square-pointed 
scale.*  Gray  describes  the  black  spruce  cone  as  hav- 
ing a  thin  denticulate  edge.  This  is  a  marvelous!}7 
good  point  of  distinction,  for,  if  one  will  snap  the 
edge  of  a  red  spruce  cone  scale  with  the  finger  nail, 
it  will  respond  with  a  somewhat  musical  note ;  on  the 
contrary,  a  black  spruce  specimen  is  either  so  thin 
that  it  will  not  snap  at  all,  or  else  it  will  produce  a 
note  pitched  so  high  that  there  is  hardly  any  music 
left  in  it.  The  same  experiment  with  the  papery 
cone  of  the  white  spruce  elicits  a  very  low  note  with 
hardly  any  musical  quality.  Of  course,  only  old  or 
very  well  dried  cones  will  serve  for  this  test. 

Another  point  of  distinction  between  the  red  and 
black  spruces  is  observable  in  the  tiny  bare  twigs :  in 
the  red  these  are  tan-red,  in  the  black  they  are  con- 

*  This  is  not  invariably  the  rule;  sometimes  the  scales  are 
rounder,  but  still  jagged-edged. 


286       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 

siderably  browner  and  duller — in  a  word,  they  lack 
color.  It  is  easier  to  make  this  test  after  the  branch- 
lets  have  been  kept  long  enough  for  the  needles  to 
drop  off.  By  comparing  the  three  species  it  will 
then  be  seen  that  the  tiny  twigs  of  the  white  spruce 
are  very  light  and  perfectly  smooth,  while  the  black 
and  red  spruce  twigs  are  covered  with  tiny  hairs 
(see  my  drawings  marked  A,  of  magnified ,  black 
and  white  spruce  twigs),  and  are  much  darker  in 
color. 

The  bark  of  the  trunk  is  brown  and  scaly,  not 
smooth  and  gray  like  that  of  the  fir.  In  March, 
spruce  gum  is  gathered  from  the  seams  in  the  trunk. 

The  red  spruce  is  distributed  over  the  country 
from  Maine  to  Pennsylvania  and  Minnesota;  it  ex- 
tends southward  along  the  Alleghany  Mountains  to 
Georgia.  There  are  immense  tracts  of  it  in  the 
mountain  regions  of  New  Hampshire  and  Maine, 
and  I  know  of  one  forest  region  comprising  no  less 
than  one  hundred  square  miles  which  is  almost  ex- 
clusively occupied  by  red  spruce  of  the  largest  pro- 
portions. This  land  lies  in  the  heart  of  the  White 
Mountains,  with  Mounts  Guyot  and  Bond  on  the 
north,  Willey,  Nancy,  and  Tremont  on  the  east,  Kan- 
kamagus,  Osceola,  Tecumseh,  and  Scar  Ridge  on  the 
south,  and  the  Lafayette  range  on  the  west.  But 
already  the  woodsman's  axe  has  penetrated  deeply 


THE   SPRUCE,  ETC. 


287 


into  the  forest,  and  a  work  of  destruction  has  be- 
gun which  before  many  years  will  occasion  ever- 
lasting regret  among  those  whose  interests  are  closely 
connected  with  this  part  of  the  country. 

Black  Spruce.       xi ie    young    black    spruce    is    often 

Fieea  nigra. 

Picea  Mariana.  whitish  purple  -  green  or  uniform 
deep  olive  -  green  (not  bluish),  with  no  eifect  of 
bloom.  The  needle  is  sharp,  four-sided,  slenderer 
than  that  of  the  red  spruce,  straight  or  curved,  as 


Black  Spruce. 

the  case  may  be,  and  often  grows  close  to  the  tan- 
colored  stem ;  the  older  stems,  half  an  inch  or  so  in 
diameter,  are  light  brown  gray.  The  cone,  about  an 
inch  and  a  quarter  long,  is  a  beautiful  light  tan  color 
when  young,  although  in  the  beginning  it  is  madder 
purple.  The  old  cone  is  apt  to  cling  tenaciously  to 
the  branchletj  and   assumes  a  dull   gray-brown  hue; 


288       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR   LEAVES. 


the  scales  are  very  thin  at  the  tip,  somewhat  square- 
pointed,  and  often  eroded  at  the  edge.  The  lower 
branches  of  tall  trees  which  grow  in  the  open  droop 
very  gracefully. 

The  black  spruce  is  found  in  cold  and  damp 
woods  from  New  England  to  Pennsylvania,  central 
Michigan,  and  Minnesota;  southward  it  follows  the 
Alleghany  Mountains  to  North  Carolina.  The  wood 
is  yellowish  white,  tough,  and  clear  of  all  but  small 
and  rather  ornamental-looking  knots ;  it  is  largely 
used  in  construction  and  interior  finish. 
White  Spruce.  The  white  spruce  differs  from  the 
Picea  alba.  black  in  the  following  particulars  : 
The  needle  is  slenderer  and  is  sometimes 
longer,  the  little  twigs  are  lighter  col- 
ored (decidedly  buff),  and  the  cone  is 
slender,  longer,  light  green  when  very 
young,  and  light  tan  color  when  older. 
The  cones  of  this  spruce  are  often  two 
inches  long,  and  papery -soft  under  pres- 
sure of  the  fingers ;  they  drop  off  at  the 
end  of  the  year.  My  drawing  shows  the 
cone  in  three  stages  of  its  development : 
notice  that  the  edges  of  the  scales  are 
clean  cut,  not  jagged.  The  needles  are 
usually  a  trifle  curved,  and  on  being 
bruised  emit  a  rather  disagreeable,  pun- 


White  Spruce. 


THE  SPRUCE,   ETC. 


289 


gent  odor,*  which  is  a  sufficient  and  certain  means 
for  the  identification  of  the  tree. 

The  general  color  of   the  white  spruce  is  light 
olive-green  (that  is,  in  young  trees)  with  a  sugges- 
tion of  surface  bloom.       'he  tree 
is  exceedingly  ornamen- 
tal,   and     assumes 
a   perfect    cone 
shape  when    its 
growth  is  unim- 
peded.    It  attains   a 
height    of    from     20 
to   100   feet,   and   is 
common   in   the   ex- 
treme Northern  States 

from  Maine  to  Minnesota.  The  wood  is  beautifully 
clear  and  white,  and  is  extensively  used  for  interior 
finish.  The  best  and  clearest  quality  of  white  spruce 
I  can  only  compare  with  satinwood. 

Colorado  Blue  Spruce.  The    Colorado    spruce,    sometimes 

Picea  pungens.        called    silver    spruce,   is   a   Hoc 
Mountain  species  frequently  cultivated  in  our  East- 
ern parks  and  gardens;  there  are  several  beautiful 
but  small  specimens  in  the  Arnold  Arboretum  ne  r 
±>oston.     There  is  also  a  charming  larger  spe  amen 


White  Spruce  Cones. 


*  It  is  unpleasantly  suggestive  of  the  feline  tribe. 
20 


290       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


on  the  lawn  of  Messrs.  Ellwanger  and  Barry's  nurs- 
eries at  Rochester,  IN".  Y.  This  tree  may  be  iden- 
tified at  once  by  its  long,  sharp  needle,  which  is  gen 
erally  sage-green  in  color,  but  which  imparts  to  the 
tree  a  peculiar,  light  bluish  tint.  Kot  all  specimens 
are  alike  in  this  respect,  as  some  are  greener  than 
others,  and  a  few  have  a  somewhat  rusty  tinge. 

The  needle  is  three  quarters  of  an 
inch  or  an  inch  in  length,  curved,  ex- 
tremely sharp  pointed,  and  it  emits 
a  disagreeable,  pungent  odor  when 
bruised.*     The  little  twigs  bristle 
all  around  with  needles,  and  when 
young  they   are   a  beautiful  tan- 
color.     The  general  effect  of  some 
of     the      handsomest      Colorado 
spruces    is   light   sage-green  of  a 
very  bluish  tone  ;  the  tree  is  one  of 
the    lightest    colored  of    the    ever 
greens,  and  has  a  perfectly  conical 
figure  which  is  strikingly  ornamental, 
especially  when  it  is  crowned  by  clus- 
ters  of  long,  red,  tan-colored  cones; 
these  are  usually  four  inches  or  less  in 
Co,l^ceBlue      length. 


*  The  Colorado  blue  spruce  has  the  same  strong  odor  as  the 
white  spruce. 


THE   SPRUCE,  ETC. 


291 


Norway  Spruce.  The  Norway  spruce  is  another  hand- 
Picea  exceim.  some  species,  which  is  generally  con- 
fined to  parks  and  private  grounds.  This  tree  grows 
from  50  to  120  feet  high,  according  to  circumstances ; 
in  the  forests  of  Norway  its  long,  drooping 
branches  and  tall  figure  form  a  conspicu- 
ous feature  of  the  landscape.  A  num- 
ber of  varieties  assume  extraordinary 
if  not  grotesque  shapes  ;  a 
certain  weeping  form,  which 
may  be  seen  in  the  Ar- 
nold Arboretum,  is  a 
most  peculiar,  bare- 
branched,  snaky-look- 
ing character,  which 
can  not  fail  to  attract 
notice. 

The  needle  of  the  Norway  spruce  is  slightly 
curved,  about  seven  eighths  of  an  inch  long,  and 
olive-orreen.  The  cone  is  four  and  a  half  or  five 
inches  long,  and  is  pendant;  its  color  is  light  red- 
dish brown,  and  the  rigid  scales  are  square-pointed. 

The  bald  cypress  is  a  funereal -look - 

Southern  Cypress,     ing  tree  of  the    Southern    swamps, 

Taxodium  distich um.  w])0se  picturesque,  spirelikc  contour 

and  grim  stateliness  are  qualities  not  without  a  cer- 
tain charm.     It  is  found  in  swampy  lands  from  Mary- 


Norway  Spruce. 


292      FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR   LEAVES. 


land    westward    to    Missouri    and    throughout   the 
South.*     The  tree  is  often  completely  surrounded  by 

water,  from  which  it  rises 
straight  as  an  arrow..  In  the 
water  and  growing  up  from 
the  roots  are  frequently  seen 
strange,  lumpy,  conical  growths 
which  are  called  "  knees  "  ;  in  a 
cypress  swamp  these  conspic- 
uous formations  invariably  at- 
tract attention,  f 
The  leaves  of  the  cypress  are 
deciduous,  flat,  light  olive -green, 
and  from  seven  sixteenths  to  three 
quarters  of  an  inch  long ;  they  are 
sometimes  (on  the  smaller  and  flow- 
ering branchlets)  awl -shaped  and  overlapping.  The 
general  color  of  the  tree  is  a  dull,  deep  green.  The 
roundish  cones  are  an  inch  or  so  long,  with  closed, 
thickish,  irregular  scales. 


Bald  Cypress. 


*  At  Chapultepec,  Mexico,  there  is  an  American  cypress  which, 
when  the  Spaniards  entered  the  country  in  1520,  was  called  "  The 
Cypress  of  Montezuma,"  being  then  of  immense  size,  over  forty 
feet  in  girth  and  120  feet  in  height. 

f  At  every  "  knee  "  a  downward,  strong  root  deeply  penetrates 
the  ground  ;  these  "  knee  "  roots  are  the  anchors  by  which  the  bald 
cypress  is  held  firmly  in  its  soft  and  boggy  bed. 

There  is  a  fine  specimen  of  the  bald  cypress,  40  feet  high,  and 
with  a  symmetrical  figure,  at  Dosoris,  Long  Island. 


THE  SPRUCE,   ETC.  293 

The  bald  cypress  grows  from  GO  to  125  feet 
high,  and  furnishes  valuable,  clear  lumber  for  in- 
terior trimmings.  Its  grain  is  exceedingly  beauti- 
ful, and  in  the  vicinity  of  the  roots  its  darker  rich 
brown  color  and  striking  convolutions  are  not  equaled 
by  many  of  the  handsomest  hard  woods.  For  panel- 
ing and  doors  not  the  best  of  French  walnut  seems  to 
me  quite  as  effective  as  cypress. 

Two  trees  which  I  must  mention  in  passing,  be- 
cause they  are  representatively  American,  are  the 
great  trees  of  California — Sequoia  gigantea,  and  the 
redwood,  Sequoia  semper  vir  ens.  The  former  is  the 
largest  tree  known.* 

Some  of  these  great  trees  measure  3o0  feet  in 
height,  and  through  the  tunneled  stem  of  one  par- 
ticular specimen  a  coach  and  four  horses  has  been 
driven,  with  room  enough  and  to  spare.     The  needles 

*  Dr.  Bigelow  gives  the  following  description  of  one,  which  I 
copy  from  General  James  S.  Brisbin's  Trees  and  Tree  Planting: 
"  Eighteen  feet  from  the  stump  it  was  fourteen  and  a  half  feet  in 
diameter.  As  the  diminution  of  the  annual  growth  from  the  heart 
or  center  to  the  outer  circumference  orsapwood  appeared  in  regu- 
lar succession,  I  placed  my  hand  midway,  measuring  six  inches, 
and  carefully  counting  the  rings  on  that  space,  which  were  one 
hundred  and  thirty,  making  the  age  of  the  tree,  by  this  computa- 
tion, one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  eighty-five  years.  ...  It 
required  thirty-one  paces,  three  feet  each,  to  measure  its  circum- 
ference, making  ninety-three  feet:  and  to  fell  it.  it  took  live  men 
twenty-two  days,  and  the  mere  cutting  down  cost  over  five  hun- 
dred dollars." 


294       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 

are  awl-shaped,  or  flat  and  sharp  pointed,  and  they 
are  scattered  around  the  branchlets ;  in  color  they  are 
light  olive-green.  Occasionally  the  tree  is  planted  in 
the  East,  but  with  little  success,  as  it  lives  but  a  few 
years.*  The  other  Sequoia,  called  redwood,  is  not  so 
large,  but  the  average  diameter  of  the  older  trees  is 
not  far  from  eight  feet.  The  needles  are  from  half 
an  inch  to  a  full  inch  in  length,  smooth,  sharp 
pointed,  and  deep,  shiny  olive-green  above,  bat 
covered  with  a  whitish  bloom  below.  The  cones 
are  roundish  and  scarcely  an  inch  in  diameter.  The 
ruddy-colored  wood  is  not  unlike  that  of  the  red 
cedar,  and  it  is  extensively  used  for  interior  finish. 
Unfortunately,  it  is  rather  soft.  The  redwood  is  not 
hardy  in  the  Eastern  States. 

Arbor  vitse.  The  arbor  vitse  is  a  familiar  hedge 
Thuja  occidentaiis.  evergreen,  which  needs  no  description 
for  its  identification.  But  we  should  know  how  to 
distinguish  it  from  the  common  white  cedar  (Chamce- 
cyparis  sphceroidea).  Arbor  vitge  has  a  bright-green 
leaf  spray  with  overlapping  scales  which  are  closely 
pressed  together  on  the  extremely  flat  branchlets ; 
these  have  a  very  aromatic  odor  when  bruised.     The 

*  There  is  a  remarkably  beautiful,  conical,  but  small  specimen 
at  Dosoris,  Long  Island,  which  still  thrives.  Prof.  Meehan  says 
that  the  Sequoia  is  destroyed  by  a  parasitic  fungus  which  was 
discovered  by  Mr.  J.  B.  Ellis,  of  Newfield,  N.  J. 


THE  SPRUCE,   ETC. 


295 


tiny  cone,  less  than  half  an  inch  long,  has  from  six 
to  ten  pointless  scales,  grows  in  an  inverted  position 
on  the  branchlet,  is  of  a  light  yellow-brown  color,  and 
opens  to  the  very  base  when  ripe.  The  bark  of  the 
tree  is  fibrous,  dull  gray-brown,  and  on  some  speci- 


:%&>' 


Arbor  Vitffl. 


mens  it  grows  in  a  somewhat  spiral  fashion  about  the 
trunk. 

Arbor  vitae  is  found  in  swamps  and  cool,  moist 
woods,  from  New  York  southward  along  the  Alle- 
ghany Mountains  to  North  Carolina ;  westward  it  ex- 
tends to  Minnesota.     It  grows  from  20  to  50  feet 


296       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 


high,  and  has  light,  soft,  but  very  durable  wood 
especially  adapted  to  withstand  extremes  of  heat 
and  moisture  when  in  contact  with  the  ground. 

White  Cedar.       The  white  cedar  is  similar  in  some 
Chamcecyparis  respects  to  the  foregoing  species,  but 

spticeroid  ea.  x  °        °     r 

Cupressus  tiujoides.  certain  differences  are  well  marked, 
and  they  are  sufficient  to  prevent  a  confusion  of  the 
*  two  trees.  The  white  cedar  grows  in  a 
symmetrical  conelike  figure,  with  a  gen- 
eral color  effect  of  warm,  light  brown- 
ish green  ;  arbor  vitse  is  usually  much 
greener.  The  leaf  spray  of  this  tree 
is  less  broad  and  flat  than  that  of 
the  foregoing  species  ;  perhaps  I 
might  also  call  it  less  heavy  and 
coarse.  The  tiny  cone  is  scarcely 
one  third  of  an  inch  in  diameter, 
and  has  about  six  scales,  which  do 
not  open  to  the  base  of  the  cone 
but  at  a  wide  angle  with  its  axis ; 
the  scales  are  thick  and  pointed  or  bossed  in  the 
middle. 

The  white  cedar  is  found  from  southern  Maine 
through  the  Atlantic  States  to  Florida,  also  along 
the  Gulf  to  Mississippi,  and  generally  inhabits  cold 
swamps.  It  grows  from  30  to  90  feet  high ;  its 
durable   though   soft  white  wood   is  used   in  boat- 


White  Cedar. 


TIIK   SPRUCBj   ETC. 


207 


building,  and  for  shingles,  railroad  ties,  the  founda- 
tions of  buildings,  and  fence  posts.  It  is  capable  of 
withstanding  the  disintegrating  effect  of  alternating 
lieat  and  moisture.     The  bark  is  very  fibrous. 

Common  Juniper.  The  common  juniper  must  be  con- 
Juniperus  communis,  sidered  more  as  a  shrub  than  a  tree, 
as  it  rarely  grows  tall  enough  to  look  treelike.  In 
habit,  however,  it  is  sometimes 
erect ;  but  more  frequently  it 
has  low  -  spreading  branches, 
which  grow  so  close  to  the 
ground  that  they  are  apt  to 
be  trodden  upon.  Its  sharp- 
pointed  needle,  green  below 
and  a  trifle  whitish  above,  is 
very  prickly,  grows  in  threes 
around  the  slender  stem,  and 
does  not  often  exceed  half  an 
inch  in  length.  The  pretty  cadet-  Common  Juniper" 
blue  berries,  about  the  size  of  a  pea,  are  black  purple 
beneath  the  bloom  ;  they  have  an  agreeable,  aromatic 
odor  when  bruised,  and  are  largely  used  in  the 
flavoring  of  gin.  Juniper  is  common  throughout 
the  North  on  dry  and  sterile  ground,  and  grows 
hardly  more  than  one  or  two  feet  high.  I  have 
found  it  plentiful  on  the  eastern  shores  of  Lake 
George,  but  never  in  the  White  Mountains. 


298       FAMILIAR  TREES   AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


Red  Cedar.  Tied   cedar  is  a  dark-hued  tree  of 

junipems  Virginia™.  compact  habit,  popularly  consid- 
ered less  beautiful  than  useful.  It  is  certainly  pic- 
turesque in  some  of  its  rugged  and  varied  forms, 
but  as  it  advances  in  age  a  certain  raggedness  of 
figure  unfits  it  for  the  ornamentation  of  a  neat  and 
prim  park,  the  orderly  gardener  of  which  prides  him- 
self on  his  success  in  excluding  what  I  might  call  the 
wild  and  picturesque  romanticism  of  Mature.  But 
in  Bucks  County,  Pa.,  I  am  told  that  many  hill- 
sides are  ornamented  with  its  Gothic  figure  (indeed, 
its  contour  is  strikingly  suggestive  of  the 
pointed  arch),  and  that  the  landscape  is 
greatly  enriched  by  its  somber 
and  refreshing  dull  green.  To 
my  mind,  there  are  few  trees 
whose  sober  coloring  is  invested 
with  so  great  a  charm.  I  call 
to  remembrance  certain  speci- 
mens firowinff  in  Virginia 
whose  green  is  beautifully 
tinged  with  rusty  red,  and 
others  elsewhere  with  a  green  pervaded  by  warm 
orange.  In  Roxbury,  Mass.,  there  are  also  many  rusty 
colored  trees.  Kot  the  least  interesting  effect  of  the 
coloring  in  the  red  cedar  is  the  cadet  blue-gray  of 
the  berries  which  plentifully  besprinkle  the  branchlets 


Red  Cedar. 


RED  CEDAR. 

Near  Chatham,  Morris  Co.,   N.  J. 


THE  SPRUCE,  ETC.  209 

of  the  fertile  trees*  in  the  autumn.  The  leaves  are 
very  tiny,  and  scalelike  on  the  older  brandies,  but 
awl-shaped  or  needlelike,  sharp,  and  spreading  on 
the  newer  ones ;  under  close  scrutiny  the  foreshort- 
ened little  branehlet  is  square,  and  the  color,  where 
it  is  not  rusty,  is  shiny  olive-green.  The  berries, 
black-purple  beneath  the  bloom,  are  about  as  large 
as  small  peas.f  The  bark  is  brown  and  fibrous,  and 
sometimes  comes  off  in  long  shreds,  leaving  the  bare 
trunk  smooth.  The  wood  has  an  exceedingly  spi<-v 
odor,  and  a  wonderfully  fine,  straight  grain  which  is 
peculiarly  adapted  to  the  needs  of  a  lead  pencil ;  its 
color  is  pale  brownish-lake  red.  The  red  cedar  is 
sparingly  distributed,  excepting  in  a  few  localities 
throughout  the  United  States.  It  commonly  grows 
to  a  height  of  20  or  30  feet  in  the  Korth,  but  south- 
ward it  attains  a  height  of  from  50  to  90  feet.  It 
is  not  to  be  found  in  the  White  Mountains. 

A  near  relative  of  our  red  cedar,  a  tree  which  also 
possesses  picturesque  qualities,  is  the  European  yew 

*  The  trees  bearing  staminate  (unfertile)  flowers,  I  nin  told. 
are  the  ones  which  are  most  generally  tinged  with  a  brown-red 
or  tawny  color. 

f  I  am  told  that  in  Bucks  County  these  berries  furnish  the 
birds  with  a  plentiful  amount  of  food  in  midwinter,  and  that  on 
hot  July  days  the  oil  is  distilled  in  the  hot  sun  so  that  the  whole 
region  about  the  trees  is  filled  with  the  aromatic  perfume.  Many 
of  the  trees  are  of  such  dense  growth  that  little  or  no  sunlight 
penetrates  to  the  ground  beneath. 


300       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 

{Taxus  baccata).  This  tree  is  planted  in  our  coun- 
try, but  with  indifferent  success ;  it  rarely  amounts 
to  anything  north  of  Philadelphia.  The  evergreen 
leaves  are  sharp  pointed,  curved,  flat,  and  they  grow 
in  ranks  of  two.  In  general  effect  the  tree  has  dark- 
green,  somber,  but  beautiful  foliage.  A  remarkably 
symmetrical  conelike  variety  of  this  species  is  called 
the  Irish  yew  {Taxus  baccata,  var.  fastigiata).  There 
is  a  charmingly  compact  and  beautifully  formed  tree 
of  this  variety  at  Dosoris,  the  home  of  Mr.  Richard 
Starr  Dana,  on  Long  Island ;  but  Mr.  William  Fal- 
coner says  that  the  Irish  yew  does  not  thrive  in  this 
country — a  pity,  I  think,  because  there  are  few  trees 
which  offer  so  great  an  inducement  and  promise  to 
the  gardener  in  search  of  a  conventionally  modeled 

tree. 

The  only  yew  native  to  this  country  is  a  mere 
shrub  with  straggling  branches  which  spread  widely 
over  the  ground ;  it  is  called  Taxus  Canadensis 
{Taxus  Minor,  Sarg.),  and  improperly  ground  hem- 
lock. So  superficial  a  resemblance  to  the  true  hem- 
lock should  not  mislead  one  ;  the  distinguishing  char- 
acteristic of  the  ground  hemlock  a  sharp  observer 
would  not  fail  to  detect,  Look  at  my  drawing 
marked  A;  the  needle  at  the  end  abruptly  finishes 
in  a  sharp  point  This  is  not  the  case  with  the  needle 
of  the  true  hemlock.     I  must  also  draw  attention  to 


rill'!  SPRUCE,    ETC. 


301 


a  charming  quality  of  color  in  the  ground  hemlock 

needle  which  is  rarely  the  possession  of  any  leaf : 


Yew. 

0 

the  reverse  side  is  precisely  the  softest,  warmest,  and 
most  beautiful,  rich  yellow-green  which  we  can  find 
in  Nature.  I  have  already  alluded  to  this  particular 
green  in  a  description  of  the  mulberry  leaf.  If 
there  are  those  of  us  who  think  the  color  nothing 
extraordinary,  let  them  attempt  the  almost  impossi- 
ble task  of  matching  it  exactly.  The  beautiful  trans- 
lucent red  berry  of  the  ground  hemlock,  with  the 
black  spot  in  the  center  of  the  depression,  is  hardly 
less  interesting  than  the  warm,  green  foliage ;  its  deli- 
cacy is  only  comparable  to  that  of  the  pearly  berry  of 
the  mistletoe. 

The  ground  hemlock  is  common  on  shady  hills 
and    banks   throughout    the    Northern    States    from 


302       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 

Maine  to  Minnesota ;  its  southern  limit  is  New 
Jersey.  It  is  the  last  but  not  the  least  woodland 
character  which  I  have  thought  sufficiently  interest- 
ing and  beautiful  to  include  in  my  group  of  ever- 
green trees.  Its  lustrous,  dark-green  needle  is  as 
rich  in  color  as  that  of  the  young  and  vigorous  fir, 
and  on  the  underneath  concave  surface  is  hidden  that 
unique  green  which  is  its  exclusive  possession  among 
the  evergreens.  What  the  ground  hemlock  lacks  in 
stature  it  more  than  compensates  for  in  color. 

It  will  not  do  always  to  walk  with  head  uplifted 
and  eyes  only  for  the  tops  of  trees ;  if  we  do,  some- 
thing of  beauty  at  our  feet  will  be  lost.  Often  the 
daintiest  bit  of  tree  life  is  heedlessly  crushed  by  some 
ruthless  foot.  I  was  strongly  impressed  with  this  fact 
one  time  when,  scrambling  through  the  shrubbery  on 
a  hillside  in  an  effort  to  reach  a  mountain  ash,  I  trod 
upon  some  dainty  waxen  berries  of  the  ground  hem- 
lock. The  fruit  of  the  mountain  ash  is  heavy  and 
coarse  when  compared  with  that  of  the  ground  hem- 
lock. Place  some  of  each  together,  and  allow  them 
to  give  their  own  testimony. 

It  is  a  blessed  privilege  to  know  the  trees,  the 
flowers,  and  the  leaves  by  direct  contact  and  close 
sympathy  with  them.  It  is  not  enough  to  behold  a 
tree  with  our  eyes  and  never  touch  it  with  our  hands. 
Some  of  us  are  imperfectly  aware  of  the  personality 


TIIE  SPRUCE,    ETC.  303 

in  a  tree  or  flower,  and  we  think  Nature  reveals  her- 
self to  a  select  few.  What  a  foolish  error  of  judg- 
ment! It  is  ourselves  who  accomplish  the  revelation, 
whatever  that  maybe;  it  is  our  own  fault  if  we  do 
not  succeed.  We  do  not  admit  Nature  to  an  inti- 
macy which  it  is  the  privilege  of  some  cherished 
friend  to  enjoy,  and  we  charge  her  with  .being  un- 
fathomably  mysterious  and  enigmatical. 

Thank  Clod,  one  sweet-spirited  man  could  testify 
to  the  contrary !  Many  of  us  who  are  city  bred 
would  be  glad  to  possess  at  least  some  small  portion 
of  his  understanding  of  her.  I  believe  we  may  pos- 
sess not  only  a  share  but  a  fullness  of  this  understand- 
ing, if  we  will  only  spend  less  time  in  the  drawing 
room  and  more  in  the  woods ;  then,  perhaps,  in  the 
presence  of  the  everlasting,  forest-clad  hills,  we  can 
confidently  say,  with  Whittier: 

Transfused  through  you,  0  mountain  friends  1 
With  mine  your  solemn  spirit  blends, 
And  life  no  more  hath  separate  ends. 

I  read  each  misty  mountain  sign, 
I  know  the  voice  of  wave  and  pine, 
And  I  am  yours,  and  ye  are  mine. 

Life's  burdens  fall,  its  discords  cease, 

I  lapse  into  the  glad  release 

Of  Nature's  own  exceeding  peace. 


A  SYSTEMATICAL  INDEX 

OF  THE   NAMES   OF  TREES   OF   TIIE  EASTERN 

UNITED   STATES, 

INCLUDING  TIIE  BOTANICAL  NAMES  ACCORDING  TO 

PROF.  ASA   GRAY   AND   PROF.  C.  S.  SARGENT. 

The  letter  on  the  right  of  each  botanical  name  is  the  initial 
of  the  common  name.  The  botanical  name  according  to  Prof. 
C.  S.  Sargent  is  referred  to  that  according  to  Prof.  Asa  Gray. 


21 


30G       FAMILIAR  TREES   AND   THEIR   LEAVES. 


SPECIES  AND  VARIETIES. 


Botanical  nam*. 


Family. 


Abele     Tree     (see     Poplar, 

White). 

Abies  balsamea,  F 

Abies  Fraseri,  F 

Acer  barbatum  (see  A.  sac- 

charinum). 
Acer  barbatum,  var.  nigrum 

(see  A.  saccharinum,  var 

nigrum). 

Acer  dasycarpum,  M 

Acer  macrophyllum,  M 

Acer  negundo  (see  Negundo 

aceroides). 

Acer  palmatum,  M 

Acer  Pennsylvanic  urn,  M  . 

Acer  platanoides,  M 

Acer  rubrum,  M 

Acer  saccharinum,  M 

Acer  saccharinum,  var.  ni- 
grum. 
Acer  saccharinum,  Sarg.  (see 

A.  dasycarpum). 

Acer  spicatum,  M 

JEsculus  octandra,  B 

JEsculus  flava,  var.  purpu- 

rascens,  B. 

JEsculus  glabra,  B 

JEsculus  Hippocastanum,  H. 
JEsculus  octandra  (see  JE. 

octandra). 
JEsculus  octandra,  var.  hy- 

brida  (see  JE.  flava,  var. 

purpurascens). 

JEsculus  Pavia,  B 

JEsculus  rubicunda,  H 

Ailanthus    glandulosa    (see 

A.  glandidosus). 
Ailanthus  glandidosus.  A. . . 
Ailanthus  (see  Ailantus). 

Ailantus 

Alder,  European 

Alder,    Hoary    (see     Alder, 

Speckled). 

Alder,  Speckled 

Alnus  glutinosa,  A 

Alnus  incana,  A 

A'tielanchier       Canadensis. 

S.  J. 

Apple,  American  Crab 

Arbor  Vitae 

Arrow- wood 


Ailanthus  glandulosus. 
Abuts  glutinosa 


Alnus  incana. 


Ash,  Black 
Ash,  Blue. . 


Ash,  European 

Ash,  Green 

Ash,  Red 


Ash,  Water. 


Pyrus  corona ria 

Thuja  occidentalis. . . . 
Viburnum  dentatum. 


Quassia. 
Oak. 


Oak. 


Fraxinus  nigra 

Fraxinus    quadrangu- 

lata. 

Fraxinus  excelsior 

Fraxinus  viridis 

Fraxinus     Pennsylva 

nica. 
Fraxinus  platycarpa . . 


Rose. 

Pine. 
Honey- 
suckle. 

Oak. 

Oak. 

Oak. 

Oak. 
Oak. 

Oak. 


Paget. 


275 

278 


203 

208 


207 
195 
207 
205 
198 
202 


194 
254 
255 

253 

250 


251,  255 
251 


209 


209 
100 


97,99 
100 
99 
61 

59 
294 
191 

247 
245 

249 
244 
243 

246 


A   SYSTEMATICAL   INDEX. 


307 


SPECIES  AND   VARIETIES. 


Butanical  name. 


Ash,  Weeping 

Ash,  White 

Asimina  triloba,  P.  C. 

Aspen,  American 

Aspen,  Large-toothed. 


Balm  of  Oilead 


Basswood  (see  Linden,  Amer- 
ican). 

Basswood,  Small-leaved 

Basswood,  White 

Bay,  Bull 

Bay,  Carolina  Red 

Bay,  Sweet  (see  Magnolia, 
Small). 

Beech,  American 

Beech,  Copper 


Beech,  European 

Betula  alba,  B 

Betula   alba,   var.  atropur- 

purea. 
Betula  alba,  var.  fastigiata. 
Betula  alba,  var.  laciniata.. 
Betula  alba,  var.  pendula. . . 
Betula  alba,  var.  pubescens. 

Betula  glandulosa,  B  

Betula  lenta,  B 

Betula  lutea,  B 

Betula  nigra,  B 

Betula  papyrifera,  B 

Betula  populifolia,  B 

Bilsted  (see  Liquidamber). 
Birch,  Black 


Fraxinus  Americana. 


Family. 


Populus  tremuloides. 
Populusy  rand  idea  lata 


Pop  ulus     ba  ha  m  if  era , 
var.  candicaus. 


Tilia  pubescens 

Tilia  heterophylla 

Magnolia  grandi flora. 
I'ersea  Carolineusis  . . . 


Fagus  ferruginea 

Fagus    sylvatica,   var. 

atropurpurea. 
Fagus  sylvatica 


Birch,    Canoe     (see     Birch, 

Paper). 
Birch,    Cherry    (6ee    Birch, 

Black). 

Birch,  Cut-leaved 

Birch,  Dwarf 

Birch,  European  White 

Birch,  Gray 


Birch,  Hairy-leaved 
Birch,  Paper 


Birch,  Purple-leaved 

Birch,  Pyramidal 

Birch,  Red 

Birch,  River  (see  Birch,  Red). 
Birch,     Sweet     (see     Birch, 

Black). 

Birch,  Weeping 

Birch,     White     (see     Birch, 

Canoe). 


Betula  leuta. 


Betula  glandulosa. 

Betula  alba 

Betula  populifolia. 


Betula  papyrifera . 


Betula  nigra. 


Oak. 


Willow. 
Willow. 


Willow. 


Linden. 

Linden. 

Magnolia. 

Laurel. 


Oak. 
Oak. 

Oak. 


Oak. 


Oak. 
Oak. 

Oak. 


Uak. 


Oak. 


Paget. 

J  I1. 1 
X*  1 1 

29 
123 

125 


129 


47 
47 
21 
35 


3,  9,  107 
110 

109 
90 
92 

92 

90.  92 

92 

92 

98 

81 

84 

96 

93 
86,93 

81,86, 
1U1 


90,  92 
9K 
90 
.;.  86,92, 

93.  97, 
124 
92 

84,  89, 
93 
92 
92 
90 


92 


308       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


SPECIES  AND  VARIETIES. 


Birch,     White 

Gray). 
Birch,  Yellow. . 


(see     Birch, 


Bitternut 

Blackthorn  

Box  Elder  (see  Maple,  Ash 
leaved). 

Broussonetia  papyrifera,  M. 

Buckeye,  Fetid  (see  Buck- 
eye, Ohio). 

Buckeye,  Ohio 

Buckeye,  Purple  Sweet 


Buckeye,  Red 

Buckeye,  Sweet 

Buckeye,  Yellow  (see  Buck- 
eye, Sweet). 

Buckthorn,  Carolina 

Buckthorn,  Common 

Burning  Bush 


Burning  Bush,  European. 

Butternut 

Buttonwood 


Carpinus  Caroliniana,  H. . . 

Carya  alba,  H.  S 

Carya  amara,  B 

Carya  microcarpa,  H 

Carya  olivozformis,  P 

Carya  porcina,  P 

Carya  sulcata.  S 

Carya  tomentosa,  M 

Castanea  dentata  (see  C. 
sativa). 

Castanea  pumila,  C 

Castanea  sativa,  C 

Catalpa 

Catalpa  bignonoides,  C 

Catalpa  Catalpa  (see  Catal- 
pa bignonoides). 

Catalpa  speciosa,  C 

Catalpa,  Western 

Cedar,  Red 

Cedar,  White 


Celtis  occidentalis.  H 

Cercis  Canadensis,  R.  J. . . 
Chamozcyparis   sphanoidea, 

C. 
Cherry,    Bird    (see     Cherry, 

Wild  Red). 

Cherry,  Choke 

Cherry,  Wild  Black 

Cherry,  Wild  Red 

Chestnut 

Chinquapin 


Botanical  nime. 


Betula  lutea. 


Carya  amara 

Crataegus  tomentosa  . 


JEscxdus  glabra 

JEsculus     flava,     var. 
purpurascens. 

JEsculus  Pavia 

JEsculus  octandra 


Rhamnus  Caroliniana. 
Rhamnus  cathartica  . . 
Evonymus   atropurpu- 

reus. 
Evonymus  Europaius.. 

Juglans  cinerea    

Platanus  occidentalis . 


Catalpa  bignonoides 


Catalpa  speciosa 

Jun iperus  Yirg in iana. 
Chamo?cyparis     sphai- 
roidea. 


Prunus  Virginiana. . 
Prunus  serotina  .... 
Prunus  Pennsylvania 

Castanea  sativa 

Castanea  pumila 


Family. 


Oak. 

Walnut. 

Rose. 


Soapberry. 
Soapberry. 

Soapberry. 
Soapberry. 


Buckthorn. 

Buckthorn. 

Holly. 

Holly. 

Walnut. 

Plane  Tree. 


Bignonia. 


Bignonia. 
Pine. 
Pine. 


Rose. 
Rose. 
Rose. 
Oak. 
Oak. 


Pagea. 


9,  81, 

84.  97 

139 


80 


253 
255 

255 
254 


50 
50 

188 

189 
17,  224 
2,  172 


103 
229 
235 
234 
236 
232 
231 
232 


107 
104 
185 
185 


187 

187 

298 

294-296 

76 

30 
296 


57 

54 

52 

104 

107 


A   SYSTEMATICAL    IXDIOX. 


300 


SPECIES  AND  VARIETIES. 


Chionanthus  Virginica,  F  .. 

Cladrastis  lutea  t,see  C.  tine- 
toria). 

Cladrastis  tinctoria,  Y 

Cornel,  Red-stemmed 

Cornus  alba,  C 

Cornus  alternifolia,  D 

Cornus  florida,  D 

Cornus  stolonifera,  O 

Cotinua  Americana  (see 
Rhus  cotinoides). 

Cottonwood 

Crataegus  asstivalis,  II 

Crataegus  apiifolia,  T 

Crataegus  coccinea,  T 

Crataegus  cordata,  T 

Crataegus  Crus-galli,  T 

Crataegus  flava,  H 

Crataegus  mollis,  H 

Crataegus  oxycantha,  H 

Crataegus  punctata,  T 

Crataegus  spathulata 

Crataegus  tomentosa,  B 

Crataegus  viridis,  H 

Cucumber  Tree 

Cucumber  Tree.  Yellow 

Custard,  Apple  (see  Papaw). 

Cypress,  Bald 

Cypress,  Southern  (see  Cy- 
press, Bald). 


Date  Plum  ('see  Persimmon). 

Diospyros  Kaki.  P 

Diospj/ros  Virginiana,  P.  D. 
Dogwood,  Alternate-leaved.. 
Dogwood,  Flowering 


Elm,  American. 


Botanical  uauie. 


Cornus  alba 


Populus  monilifera. 


Family. 


Dogwood. 


Willow. 


Magnolia  acuminata. . 
Magnolia  cordata 


Tuxodium  distichum. 


Cornus  alternifolia.. 
Cornus  florida 


Ulmus  Americana. 


Elm,  Corky  White 

Elm,  English 

Elm.  Red  (see  Elm,  Slippery). 

Elm,  Scotch 

Elm,  Slippery 

Elm,  Wanoo 

Elm,  Water  i  see  PlanerTree). 
Elm.  White  (see  Elm,  Ameri 

cam. 
Elm,  Winged  (see  Elm,  Wa- 

hool. 
Elm,  Wych  (see  Elm,  Scotch). 
Euonymus  (see  Evonymus). 
Evonymus  atropurpureuSy'B, 
Evonymus  Europajus,  B 


Ulmus  racemosa. . 
Ulmus  campestris 


Fagus    Americana 
ferruginea). 


(see   F. 


Ulmus  man  tana 
Ulmus  f  u Ira  .<. . . 

Ulmus  alata. . . . 


Magnolia. 
Magnolia. 

Pine. 


Dogwood. 
Dogwood. 


Nettle. 

Nettle. 
Nettle. 

Nettle. 
Nettle. 
Nettle. 


Pagei. 


184 


212 
184 
184 
181 

180 
183 


127 
141 
136 
137 
134 
140 
141 
138 
l.r. 
130 
136 
130 
136 
23 
25 

21,201 


35 
33 

181 
180 


17,  56, 
81 
74 
74 

71 
8 

75 


188 


310       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


SPECIES  AND  VARIETIES. 


Botanical  name. 


Family. 


Fagus  ferruginea,  B 

Fagus  sylvatica,  B 

Fagus  sylvatica  foliis  atro- 
rubentibus  (see  F.  sylvati- 
ca, var.  atropurpureu). 

Fagus  sylvatica,  var.  atro- 
purpurea,  B. 

Fir,  Balsam 

Fir,  Fraser's  balsam 

Fir  Scotch  (see  Pine,  Scotch). 

Fraxinus  Americana,  A 

Fraxinus  Caroliniana  (see 
Fraxinus  platycarpa). 

Fraxinus  excelsior,  A 

Fraxinus  excelsior,  var.  pen- 
clula. 

Fraxinus  sambucifolia,  A... 

Fraxinus  quadrangulata,  A 

Fraxinus  Pennsylvania,  A. 

Fraxinus  Pennsyl  va  n  ica . 
var.  lanceolata  (see  F. 
viridis). 

Fraxinus  platycarpa,  A 

Fraxinus  viridis 

Fringe  Tree 


Abies  balsamea . 
Abies  Fraseri. . . 


Pine. 
Pine. 


Gleditschia  aquatica,  L 

Gleditschia  triacanthos,  L  . . 
Gleditschia  triacanthos,  var. 

Bujotii  pendida. 
Gleditschia  triacanthos,  var. 

inermis. 

Great  Tree  of  California 

Ground  Hemlock  (see  Yew. 

American). 
Gymnocladus  Canadensis,  K 
Gymnocladus  dioicus  (see  G. 

Canadensis). 


Hackberry 

Hackmatack  (see  Larch). 
Hamamelis  Virginiana,  W. 
Haw,  Black 

Haw,  Scarlet 

Haw.  Southern  Summer 

Haw,  Summer  (see  Haw,  Yel- 
low). 

Haw,  Yellow 

Hawthorn,  Fnglish 

Hawthorn,  Tall 

Hemlock 

Hemlock,  Mountain 

Hickory 

Hickory,  Small-fruit 

Hickory,  Swamp  (see  Bitter- 
nut). 


Chionanthus  Virginica]        Olive. 


Sequoia  gigantea.. 


Pine. 


Celtis  occidentalis . 


Nettle. 


Viburnum  prunifolium 

Crataegus  mollis 

Crataegus  aestivalis 


Crataegus  flava , 

Crataegus  oxycantha 
Crataegus  viridis 
Tsuga  Canadensis. . . 
Tsuga  Caroliniana. . 

Carya  alba 

Carya  microcarpa 


Honey- 
suckle. 

Rose. 

Rose. 


Rose. 

Rose. 

Rosp. 

Pine. 

Pine. 
Walnut. 
Walnut. 


Paget. 

107 
109 


110 

17,275 

278 

241 


240 
249 

247 
245 
243 


246 
244 

184 


218 
216 
218 

218 

293 

215 


76 

65 

190 

138 
141 


141 
135,  138 
136 
273 
275 
2.'9 
234 


A   SYSTEMATICAL   INDEX. 


311 


SPECIES   AND  VARIETIES. 


Hicoria  alba  (see  Carya  to- 

mentosa  >. 
Hicoria   glabra    (see   Carya 

porcina ). 
Hicoria  glabra,  var.  odorata 

(see  Carya  microcarpa). 
Hicoria  laciniosa  (see  Carya 

sulcata). 
Hicoria  minima  (see  Carya 

amara). 
Hicoria   ovata    (see    Carya 

alba). 
Hicoria    pecan    (see    Carya 

olivozformis). 

Holly,  American 

Holly,  Dahoon 

Holly,  English 

Honeysuckle,  Tartarian 


Hop  Hornbeam. 

Hornbeam 

Horse-chestnut. 


Horse-chestnut, 
ing. 


Red-flower 


Ilex  Cassine  (see  /.  Dahoon). 

Ilex  Dahoon,  H 

Ilex  monticola  (no  common 
name). 

Ilex  opaca,  H 

Indian  Bean  (see  Catalpa). 

Indian  Cherry  (see  Buck- 
thorn, Carolina). 

Ironwood  (see  Hop  Horn- 
beam). 


Judas  Tree  (see  Red  Bud). 

Juglans  cinerea,  B 

Juglans  n  igra,  W 

Juglans  regia,  W 

Juneberry  (see  Shadbush). 

Juniper     

Juniperus  communis,  J.   . 
Juniperus  Virgiuiana,  C. 


Kentucky  Coffee-Tree 


Larix  Americana,  L. 
Larix  Buroposa,  L. . . 

Larch,  American 

Larch,  European 

Linden,  American. . . . 

Linden,  European 

Liquidambar 


Botanies]  name. 


Family. 


Hex  opaca . . 
Ilex  Dahoon 


Lonicera  Tartarica 

Ostrya  Virginica 

Carpin  us  Carol  in  iana 
jEscidus     Hippocasia 

num. 
^sculus  rubicunda  . . . 


Holly. 
Holly. 


Juniperus  commit n is 


(ri/mnorladus        Cana 
densis. 


Larix  Americana 

Larix  Europoui 

Tilia  Americana 

Tilia  Europ<ra 

Liquidambar    atyraci- 
fiua, 


Honey- 
suckle. 

Oak. 

Oak. 
Soapberry. 

Soapberry. 


Holly. 


Pine. 


Tulse. 


Pine, 

Pine. 

Linden, 

Linden. 

Witch- 

Hazel. 


¥**-. 


48 

49 

48 

184 

as,  101 

103 
13,  250 

251 


49 
49 

48 


224 
226 

2-~>S 

2!  >7 
897 
298 


215 


279 
28)  i 
279 
280 
48 

4:. 
176 


312       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR  LEAVES. 


SPECIES  AND  VARIETIES. 


Liquidambar  styraciflua,  L. 


S.  B. 


Liriodendron  tulipifera,  T. 
W. 

Locust 

Locust,  Clammy 

Locust,  Honey 

Locust,  Water 

Lonicera  Tartarica,  H 


Botanical  name. 


Family. 


Madeira    Nut   (see   Walnut, 

English). 

Magnolia  acuminata,  C 

Magnolia    acuminata,    var. 

cordata  (see  M.  cordata). 

Magnolia  cordata,  C 

Magnolia    foztida    (see    M. 

grandiflora). 

Magnolia  Fraseri,  U 

Magnolia  glauca,  M 

Magnolia  grandiflora,  M 

Magnolia,  Great-flowered  . . . 

Magnolia,  Great-leaved 

Magnolia  macrophylla,  M. . . 

Magnolia,  Small 

Magnolia  tripetala  (see  M. 

umbrella). 

Magnolia  umbrella,  U 

Maple,  Ash-leaved 

Maple,  Black  Sugar  


Maple,  California 

Maple,  Cut-leaved  Silver. . . 
Maple.  Goose-foot  (see  Maple, 

Striped). 

Maple,  Japan 

Maple,  Mountain 

Maple,  Norway 

Maple,  Red 

Maple,    Rock     (see     Maple, 

Sugar). 
Maple,  Silver 


Robinia  Pseudacacia. . 

Kobinia  viscosa 

Gleditschia  triacanthos 
Gleditschia  aquatica . . 


Magnolia  grandiflora. 
Magnolia  macrophylla 


Magnolia  glauca 


Pulse. 
Pulse. 
Pulse. 
Pulse. 


Magnolia. 
Magnolia. 


Magnolia. 


Negundo  aceroides 
Acer  saccharinum,  var. 

nigrum. 
Acer  macrophyllum . . . 


Maple.  Striped. 
Maple,  Sugar  . 


(see   Maple, 
Maple, 


Maple,  Swamp 

Red). 
Maple,    White    (see 

Silver). 

Mockernut. 

Morus  alba,  M 

Morus  nigra,  M 

Morus  rubra,  M 

Mountain  Ash,  American. . . . 
Mountain  Ash,  Elder-leaved. 

Mulberry,  Black 

Mulberry,  Paper 


Acer  palmatum. . 
Acer  spicatum. . . 
Acer  platanoides 
Acer  rubrum 


Acer  dasycarpum 


Acer  Pennsylvanicum 
Acer  saccharinum 


Carya  tomentosa. 


Pi/rus  Americana 

Pyrus  so mbnci folia  . . . 

Morus  nigra 

Brovssonetia     papyri 
/era. 


Soapberry. 
Soapberry. 

Soapberry. 


Soapberry. 
Soapberry. 
Soapberry. 
Soapberry. 


Soapberry. 

Soapberry. 
Soapberry. 


Walnut. 


Rose. 

Rose. 

Nettle. 

Nettle. 


Pagei. 


176 
36 

213 
213 

216 
218 

184 


23 


25 


28 
22 
21 
21 
26 
26 
22 


27.  29 
239 
202 

208 
204 


208 
194.  206 

207 
205 


9,  17, 
192.  203 

195 
15,17,38, 
104,  178, 
192,  198 


2.32 
79 

80 

223.' 302 
224 

80 
80 


A  SYSTEMATICAL   INDKX. 


313 


SPECIES  AND  VARIETIES. 


.Mulberry  Red 

Mulberry,  White. 


Negundo  aceroides,  B.  M. . . . 
Nyssa  aquatica  (.see  N.  uni- 

flora). 

JS'yssa  biflora,  T 

Xyssa  sylvatica,  T.  S 

Nyssa  aylvatica,  var.  bi  flora 

(see  iVT.  bi  flora). 
Xyssa  uniflora ,  T 


Oak.  Barren  (see  Oak,  Black- 
jack). 

Oak,  Basket 

Oak,  Black 

Oak,  Black-Jack 

Oak,  Burr 

Oak,  Chestnut 

Oak,  Cow  (see  Oak,  Basket). 

Oak,  English 

Oak,  Iron  (see  Oak,  Post). 

Oak,  Laurel 

Oak,  Live 

Oak,     Over-cup    (see     Oak, 

Burr). 

Oak.  Pin 

Oak,  Post 

Oak,  Red 

Oak,  Scarlet 

Oak,     Shingle     (see      Oak, 

Laurel). 

Oak.  Southern  Over-cup 

Oak.  Spanish 

Oak,    Swamp    Spanish    (see 

Oak.  Pin). 

Oak,  Swamp  White 

Oak,  Water 

Oak,  White 

oak,  Willow 

Oak.  Yellow  Chestnut 

Oil  Nut  (see  Butternut). 

Osier,  Red 

Ostrya    Virginiana   (see   O. 

Virqinica). 

Ostrya  Virginica,  H,  I 

Oxydendrum  arboreum,  S... 


B"tanical  name. 


Family. 


Mortis  rubra. 
Morus  alba  . . 


Papaw. 


Pecan  Nut 

Persea  Horbonia  (see  P.  Ca 
rolinensis.  | 

Persea  <  'arolinensis,  B 

PiTsimmon 

Persimmon,  Japanese 


Qiiercus  Michauxii 

Quercus  cocciiiea,  var 
tinctoria. 

Quercus  nigra 

Quercus  macrocarpa  . . 
Quercus  Prinus 


Quercus  Eobur. 


Nettle. 
Nettle. 


Quercus  imbricaria. 
Quercus  virens 


Quercus  palustris. 
Quercus  stellata. . 
Quercus  rubra . . . . 
Quercus  coccinea. 


Quercus  lyrata  . 
Quercus  falcata 


Quercus  bicolor 

Quercus  aquatica 

Quercus  alba 

Quercus  Phellos 

Quercus  Muhlenberqii 

Corn  us  stolonifera  . . . 


Asimina  triloba... 
Carya  olivceformis 


Diospyros  Virginiana 
Diospyros  Kaki 


Dogwood. 


Custard 

Apple. 

Walnut. 


F.hnny. 

Ebony. 


Paget. 


77 
79 


239 


32 
31 


32 


Oak. 
Oak. 

153 
163 

Oak. 
Oak. 
Oak. 

168 
147 
153 

Oak. 

171 

Oak. 
Oak. 

169 
157 

Oak. 
Oak. 
Oak. 
Oak. 

165 
146 
159 
161 

Oak. 
Oak. 

149 
169 

Oak. 
Oak. 
Oak. 
Oak. 
Oak. 

150 
167 
144 
170 
156 

183 


101 
68 


29 
21,  236 


85 
88 

■do 


314:       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


SPECIES   AND   VARIETIES. 


(.see 


Picea  alba,  S 

Picea  excelsa,  S 

Ptcea  nigra,  S 

Picea  pungens,  S 

Picea  rubra,  S 

Pignut 

Pine,  Georgia 

Pine,  (iray 

Pine,  Jersey  Scrub 

Pine,  Loblolly , 

Pine,  Northern  Pitch.. 

Pine,    Northern    Scrub 
Pine,  Gray). 

Pine,  Norway  (see  Pine,  Red ). 

Pine.  Old-field  (see  Pine,  Lob- 
lolly). 

Pine,  Red 

Pine,  Scotch 

Pine,  Southern  Yellow 

Pine.  Table  Mountain 

Pine,  White 

Pine,  Yellow 

Pinus  Banksiana,  P 

Pinus  echinata  (see  Pinus 
m  itis). 

Pinus  inops,  P 

Pinus  mitts,  P 

Pinus  palustris,  P. . . 

Pinus  pungens,  P  . . . 

Pinus  resin osa,  P  . . . 

Pinus  rigid  a,  P 

Pinus  Sfrobus,  P 

Pinus  sylvestris,  P.. 

Pinus  tceda,  P 

Pinus  Virginiana  (see  Pinus 
inops). 

Planera  aquatica,  P.  E 

Plane  Tree,  Oriental 

Planer  Tree 

Platanus  occidental  is.  B.  S. . 

Plat  anus  orientalis,  S.  P. . .  . 

Plum,  Canada 

Plum,  Chickasaw 

Plum,  Wild  (see  Plum,  Can- 
ada). 

Poplar  (see  American  As- 
pen i. 

Poplar,  Balsam 

Poplar,  Carolina  (see  Cotton- 
wood). 

Poplar,  Downy 

Poplar,  Lombardy 

Poplar,  White 

Populus  alba.  P 

Populus  alba .  var.  Bolleana 

Populus  alba,  var.  nivea  . . . 

Populus  balsam  if  era.  P 

Populus  balsamijera,  var. 
candiccms. 


Botanical  name. 


Cart/a porcina. 


Family. 


Walnut. 


Pinus  Banksiana. 

Pinus  inops 

Piu  us  tceda 

Pinus  rigida 


Pin  us  resinosa. . 
Pinus  sylvestris. 
Pinus  palustris. 
Pinus  pungens. . 
Pin  us  titrobus  . . 


Pinus  mitis. 


Platanus  orientalis. 
Planera  aquatica  . . 


Primus  Americana. 
Prunus  Chicasa 


Populus  balsamifera , 


Populus  heterophylla . . 

Populus  dilatata 

Populus  alba    


Pine. 
Pine. 
Pine. 
Pine. 


Pine. 
Pine. 
Pine. 
Pine. 
Pine. 

Pine. 


Plane  Tree. 
Nettle. 


Rose. 
Rose. 


Willow. 


Willow. 
Willow. 
Willow. 


Pagei. 

288 
291 
287 
289 
282 
232 
261,  268 
269 
266 
261 
262 


270 
263 

260 
265 
17.  38, 
258 
267 
269 


266 

267 

260 

265 
270,  272 

262 
258,  272 

263 

261 


75 
175 

75 
172 
175 

51 

52 


128 


127 
123.  131 
121 
121 
122 
122 
128 
129 


A   SYSTEMATICAL   INDEX. 


315 


SPECIES  AND  VARIETIES. 


Populus  balsamifera,  var. 
intermedia. 

Populus  balsamifera,  var. 
latifolia. 

Populus  balsamifera,  var. 
viminalis. 

Populus  dilatata,  P 

Populus  grandidentata,  A.. 

Populus  heterophylla,  P 

Populus  laurifolia  (see  P. 
balsamifera,  var.  vimiua- 
lis). 

Populus  monilifera,  C 

Populus  nigra,  var.  Italica  . 

Populus  suaveoleyis  (see  P. 
balsamifera). 

Populus  suaveolens,  var.  in- 
termedia (see  P.  balsami- 
fera, var.  intermedia). 

Populus  suar>eolens,va,r.  lati- 
folia (see  P.  balsamifera, 
var.  latifolia). 

Populus  tremuloides,  A 

Prunus  Americana,  P 

Prunus  angustifolia  (see  P. 
Chicasa). 

Primus  Chicasa,  P 

Prunus  nigra  (see  P.  Ameri- 
cana). 

Prunus  Pennsylvanica,  C. . . 

Prunus  serotina,  C  ...    

Prunus  Virginiana,  C 

Pi/rus  Americana,  M 

Pi/rus  coronaria,  A 

Pyrus  sambuci folia,  M 


Quercitron  (see  Oak,  Black). 
Quercus  acuminata  (see   Q. 

Muhlenbergii). 

Quercus  alba,  O 

Quercus  aquatica,  O 

Querents  bicolor,  O 

Quercus  coccinea,  O 

ijucrrus  coccinea,  var.  fi'iic- 

toria,  O. 

Quercus  falcata,  o 

Qwrcus  imbricaria,  O 

Quercus  lyrata,  O 

(Jurrcux  macrocarpa,  O 

V»c)ru.s  Marilaurlira  isee^. 

','"<  reiu  Michauxii,  O 

Quercus  minor  (see  Q.  ateZ- 

/afr/). 
Quercus  Muhlenbergii,  O. ... 

\)i/ercits  ?i  fpm ,  0 

Quercus  nigra,  Surg,  (see  y. 

or/i/nf/'ra). 
QtM  reus  2xl^us^r^8i  O 


Botanical  name. 


Family. 


Pa«M. 

129 

129 

129 

181 
125 

127 


127 
131 


123 
51 


52 


52 
54 
57 

223 
59 

224 


144 
167 
150 
161 
163 

167 

169 
149 
147 


152 


156 
168 


165 


316       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND  THEIR   LEAVES. 


SPECIES  AND  VARIETIES. 


Quercus  Phellos,  O 

Quercus  platauoides  (see  Q. 

bicolor). 

Quercus  Prinus,  O 

Quercus  Kobur,  O 

Quercus  rubra,  O 

Quercus  stellata,  O 

Quercus  velutina  (see  Q.  coc- 

cinea,  var.  tinctoria). 

Quercus  virens,  O 

Quercus  Virginiana  (see  Q. 

virens). 


Red  Bud 

Redwood 

Rhamnus  Caroliniana,  B... 

Rhamnus  cathartica,  B 

Rhus  cotinoides,  S 

Rhus  typhina,  S 

Rhus  venenata,  S 

Rhus    Vernix  (see  R.   vene- 
nata). 

Robinia  Pseudacacia,  L 

Robinia  viscosa,  L 


Salix  alba,  W 

Salix  alba,  var.  argentea  . . . 

Salix  alba,  var.  ccerulea 

Salix  alba.  var.  vitellina 

Salix  amygdaloides 

Salix  Babylonica,  W 

Salix  Babylonica,  var.  annu- 
laris. 

Salix  Bebbiana  (see  S.  ros- 
trata). 

Salix  Caprea,  W 

Salix  cordata.  W 

Salix  fluviatilis  (see  S.  longi- 
folia). 

Salix  fragilis.  W 

Salix  longifolia,  W 

Salix  lucida.  W - 

Salix  nigra,  W 

Salix  nigra,  var.  falcata,  W. 

Salix  rostrata,  W 

Sassafras 

Sassafras  officinale,  S 

Sassafras  sassafras  (see  <S. 
o^fctnaZe). 

Sequoia  gigantea.  G 

Sequoia  sempervirens,  R. . . . 

Service  Berry  (see  Shadbush). 

Shadbush 

Shagbark  (see  Hickory). 
Shellbark  (see  Hickory). 

Shellbark,  Big 

Smoke  Tree,  American 


Botanical  name. 


Cercis  Canadensis 

Sequoia  sempervirens 


Sassafras  officinale. . . 


Amelanchier  Canaden- 
sis. 


Cart/a  sulcata  . . 
Rhus  cotinoides. 


Family. 


Pulse. 
Pine. 


Laurel. 


Rose. 


Walnut. 
Cashew. 


Paget. 


170 


153 
171 
159 
146 


157 


30 
293 
50 
50 
221 
219 
221 


213 
213 


116 
116 
116 
116 
118 
116 
117 


111 
112 


113 
113 
118 
117 
117 
119 
9,39 
39 


293 
293 

61 


231 
221 


A  SYSTEMATICAL   INDEX. 


81 


SPECIES   AM)    \  A  ill  El  II  S 


|i   ;mh.  mI  nam*. 


Oxydt  nd*  urn  arbor*  um 


Rhus  venenata 
Rhus  typhina. . 


Sorrel  Tree 

Sour  Gum  (see  Tupelo). 

Spruce,  Black Picea  nigra 

Spruce,  Colorado  Blue Picea  pungent 

Spruce,  Norway Pie*  a  <  xc*  lea  . 

Spruce,  Bed Picea  rubra... 

Spruce,  White Pie*  a  alba  . 

Sugarberry  (see  Blackberry). 

Sumach,  Poison 

Sumach,  Stag  horn 

Sweet  (Juin  (see  Liquidam- 

ber). 
Sycamore  (see  Buttonwood). 
Sycamore,     European     (see 

"Plaue.  Tree,  Oriental). 


Tacamahac  (see  Poplar,  Bal- 
sam). 

Tamarack  (see  Larch). 

Taxodium  distich  utn,  C 

Taxus  baccata,  Y 

Taxus  baccata,  var.  fastigi- 
ato,  Y. 

Taxus  Canadensis,  Y 

Taxus  Minor  (see  Taxus 
Canadensis). 

Thorn,  Cockspur 

Thorn,  Dotted-f  raited 

Thorn,  Parsley-leaved 

Thorn,  Scarlet-fruited  (see 
Thorn,  White). 

Thorn,  Washington 

Thorn,  White 

Thuja  occidentalism  A 

Tilia  Americana,  B.  L 

Tilia  Eurojura,  L 

Tilia  heterophylla,  B 

Tilia  jiultescens.  B 

Tsuga  Canadensis,  H 

Tsuga  Caroliniana,  H 

Tulip  Tree 


Tupelo 

Tupelo.  Large . 
Tupelo.  Water. 


UlmUS  (data,  E , 

L  'tin  its  Americana,  E 

( 'im  us  campestris,  E 

I  'hn  us  fnlra.  E 

/  Im  us  Montana,  E 

/  'halts  rarriiuisa,  E , 

Umbrella  Tree 

Umbrella  Tree.  Ear-leaved 


Viburnum  dentat urn.  A. 

Viburnum  Lentago,  V  . 


Crataegus  Crua-gaUi. 
(  ratcegus  punctata . . 
<  ratatjits  apiifulia  . . 


Crataegus  cordata , 

< 'rata <ju#  coccinea 


Liriodendron 

/era. 

ffyssa  sylvatica 
Xt/ssa  uni flora. . 

Xijssa  In ft  a  it  t  .  .  . 


tulipi 


Magnolia  I  rmbrt  lla. 
Magnolia  FYaet  1 1 


Kamil  \. 


Heath. 

l'ine. 

Pine. 
Pine 
Pine. 

Pine. 

<  lashew. 
( lashew . 


Rose. 
Rose. 

Hub.-. 


Rose 

Hose. 


Magnolia. 

I>ojr\VOOd. 

Dogwood. 

Dogwood. 


Magnolia. 
Qolia. 


287 

889 
291 

886, 

221 
210 


291 
300 
300 

300 


140 
188 

130 


134 
187 

294 

43 
46 
47 

47 
1*73 

27.r> 
30 

31 
32 
3U 


71 
74 

71 
74 

.»- 

I  I 

88 


'.».  191 
luo 


318       FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR  LEAVES. 


SPECIES  AND  VARIETIES. 


Viburnum  prunifolium,  H. 
Viburnum,  Sweet 


Wahoo  (see  Burning  Bush). 

Walnut,  Black 

Walnut,  English 

Water     Beech     (.see     Horn 

beam). 
Whitewood  (see  Tulip  Tree). 

Willow,  Black 

Willow,  Crack 

Willow,  Goat 

Willow,  Heart-leaved 

Willow,  Hoop 


Botanical  name. 


Viburnum  Lentayo. 


Juglans  nigra 
Juglans  reyia. , 


Willow,  Kilmarnock. . . 
Willow,  Long-beaked. 
Willow,  Long-leaved  . . 
Willow,  Scythe  leaved. 


Willow,  Shining 

Willow,  Weeping 

Willow,  Western  Black. 

Willow,  White 

Witch-Hazel 


Yellowwood 

Yew,  American. 
Yew,  European. 
Yew,  Irish 


Salix  nigra 

Salix  fray  His 

Salix  Caprea 

Salix  cor  data 

Salix  Babylouica,  var, 
annularis. 


Salix  rostrata 

Salix  lonyi folia 

Salix  nigra,  var.  fal- 

cata. 

Salix  lucida 

Salix  Babylouica 

Salix  amygdaloides  . . . 

Salix  alba 

Hamamelis       Virgini- 

ana. 


Cladrastis  tinctoria . . . 

Taxus  Canadensis 

Taxus  baccata 

Taxus     baccata,     var. 
fastigiata. 


Family. 


Honey- 
suckle. 


Walnut. 
Walnut. 


Willow. 
Willow. 
Willow. 
Willow. 
Willow. 


Willow. 
Willow. 
Willow. 

Willow. 
Willow. 
Willow. 
Willow. 
Witch- 
Hazel. 


Pulse. 
Pine. 
Pine. 
Pine. 


190 
190 


226 

228 


117 
113 
111 
112 
117 

111 
119 
113 
117 

118 
116 
118 
116 
65,  179 


212 
300 
300 
300 


INDEX. 


Albany,  N.  Y.,  185. 

Alleghany  Mountains,  28,  49,  50,  G8, 

146,  15^,  155,  159,  170,  182.  220.  224, 

244,  254,  259,  266,  274,  275,  278,  286, 

288,  295. 
Ammonoosuc  River,  283. 
Andover,  Mass.,  71. 
Androscoggin  River,  Me.,  103. 
Arnold  Arboretum,  42,  152,  100,  181, 

200,  275,  284,  289,  291. 

Baltimore.  Md.,  96,  178. 

Bartram  Botanic  Garden,  209. 

Bedford,  N.  H.,  155. 

Big  Smoky  Mountains,  Tenn.,  195. 

Blair   N.  II.,  278. 

Boston,  Mass..  25,  26. 

Boston  Common,  74. 

Cambridge.  Mass..  73. 

Campton,  N.  H.,  65,  83,  159,  161,  215, 

278. 
Cape  Cod,  Mass..  147. 
Cape  Fear  River.  N.  C.  76. 
Catskill  Mountains,  50.  221. 
Cayuga  Lake,  N.  Y.,  240. 
Concord,  Mass.,  71. 

Danvers,  Mass.,  231. 

Deerfleld,  Mass..  71. 

I>istrict  of  Columbia.  166,  103. 

Dosoris.  Long  Island,  N.  Y.,  212,  300. 


Ellis  River,  283. 
Euglewood,  N.  J..  39. 


Fairmount  Park,  Philadelphia,  Pa., 

166. 
Fishkill-on-the-Hudson,  155. 
Flume  House,  Frauconia  Mountains 

N.  H.,  18. 
Flushing.  L.  I.,  100,209. 
Frankfort,  Ky.,  173. 

Gale  River,  2&3. 
Geueseo,  N.  Y.,  152. 
Gloucester,  Mass.,  23. 
Great  Smoky  Mountains,  28. 
Greeulield,  Mass.,  ?i. 

Hartford,  186. 
Saverhill,  Mass.,  172. 
Hudson  River,  154. 

Jamaica  Plain,  26. 

Lake  Champlain,  148.  155,  240,  244. 
Lake  George,  224,  297. 
Lake  Mahopac,  NY..  W. 
Uvermore  Falls,  N.  B.,  86. 

Manchester,  Mass  .  42. 
Martha's  Vineyard,  147. 
Medford,  West,  Mass..  228. 
Merrimac  River.  72,  172. 
Bffiddleton,  Mass.,  i  W 

Milton,  Mass..  42. 

Mobile,  Ala..  21. 

Mount    Cannon,    Pranoonla   Notch, 

N   II..  224 

Mount  Mitchell.  N.  C,  39. 


319 


320      FAMILIAR  TREES  AND   THEIR   LEAVES. 


New  Haven,  Conn.,  71. 
New  Orleans,  21. 
New  York,  N.  Y.,  154,  185. 
North  Conway,  259. 

Palenville,  N.  Y.,  79. 

Pemigewasset  River  Valley,  N.  H., 
78,  112,  125,  133,  155,283. 

Penobscot  River  Valley,  148. 

Phoenix  Nursery,  Bloomington,  111., 
212. 

Plymouth,  N.  H.,  73,  90,  173,  206. 

Potomac  River,  Va.,  166. 

Presidential  Range,  White  Moun- 
tains, 284. 

Prospect  Park,  Brooklyn,  166. 

Public  Garden,  Boston,  110,  184,  189, 
216. 

Quincy,  Mass.,  48. 

Red  River  Valley,  La.,  150. 
Ridgewood,  N.  J.,  213. 
Rochester,  N.  Y.,  290. 


Rocky  Mountains,  289. 
Roxbury,  Mass.,  31,  207,  298. 

Sabine  River,  Tex.,  247. 

Saco  River,  283. 

Sandwich,  N.  H.,  283. 

Saugus,  Centre  Village,  Mass.,  228. 

Saugus,  East,  Mass.,  39. 

Schuylkill  River,  241. 

South  Seekonk,  Mass.,  146. 

Staten  Island,  N.  Y.,  268. 

St.  Louis,  Mo.,  178. 

Tottenville,  Staten  Island,  N.  Y.,  170. 

Ware  River,  Mass.,  148. 
Washington  Square,  New  York,  175, 

211. 
Waverly,  Mass.,  152. 
White  Mountains,  42,  43,  63,  65,  71, 

94,  99,  186,  189,  195,  200,  206,  224, 

247,  257,  271,  274,  283,  286. 
Wilmington,  Del.,  153. 
Winooski  River,  Vt.,  240. 
World's  Fair,  Chicago,  111.,  130. 


(10) 


THE  END. 


SSiS 


HP 


tJKffl 


-■.'  ■''■'•; 


